


The War for Auradon

by Foarrin



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: AU/OOC Chad, Broken Barrier, Camelot, Excalibur, F/M, Gil with larger role, Jane with Magic, Spells & Enchantments, Villain Invasion
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-22
Updated: 2018-07-31
Packaged: 2019-06-14 17:57:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 18
Words: 51,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15394272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Foarrin/pseuds/Foarrin
Summary: The tide has turned in favor of the villains. The greatest war Auradon has ever seen is about to begin.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Descendants.

Ben stood alone in his study, his hands in the pockets of his royal blue slacks. Fire flickered in the grate in the wall adjacent to where his desk sat. The sputtering flames cast dim dancing shadows across the walls and the king's back. He could not face the empty room. It was too quiet and too large. He would have preferred his office be in one of the smaller rooms on a lower floor of the palace, but it was tradition that this was the reigning monarch's office and study. And, frankly, he had been too depressed to order the staff to move everything and cram all the furniture into a smaller space. So, he was making the room work by keeping it dimly lit so that it gave the illusion of being smaller than it really was.

In the month following his royal cotillion, he had considered taking all of his official documents and orders he had to sign to his room. It was a much cozier place to work, and sometimes, he did do that. In fact, most of the time that he spent in his study was used to stare out the large window that took up most of the wall behind his desk. From his room on the other side of the palace, he could not see it. But, here in his office, the window gave a perfect view of the Isle of the Lost.

After Uma's retreat at the cotillion, Ben had thought everything would be perfect. Mal had said she loved him. But, it had not lasted. In the next few days, the media had flooded Mal with questions and photographs. Then one night, almost a week after the cotillion, Mal had come to Ben and said she would be returning to the Isle. For good this time. While she had said she loved him, she had also said she couldn't accept the responsibility of being queen and leading a life with so many rules and expectations. She had initially left for this reason, and it had driven her away once again. And this time, Ben believed her. He had believed her because there had been no tears. Her eyes had been red and puffy as if she had spent the last few hours crying before coming to him. But the fact that no tears came when she told him she was leaving made him believe she had truly made up her mind this time.

So he had let her go without a fight.

He didn't show his emotions until afterward when he had smashed the stain-glass window that he had commissioned. In a beast-like rage, he had hammered his fists on it until it broke. He had stood there, punching every last piece of glass out of the frame until nothing remained. Colored glass had surrounded his feet while tears coated his cheeks and blood ran down his hands.

Ben clenched his hands into fists in his pockets, remembering the cuts that had taken almost two weeks to heal. He had injured his hands so badly that it had been impossible for him to hold a pen, tourney stick, or fencing metal until just a few days ago.

"I knew I'd find you here."

Ben didn't look away from the Isle. He had heard the soft click as the door opened. It was easy to hear everything in such a silent room at such a silent time. Besides, a part of him had expected her to come. For the past few nights, she had come and sat beside the fire. But, usually, neither one of them talked. He knew one of them would break the silence eventually. Sometimes, heartbreak needed another heartbreak to mend. "Couldn't sleep?" he asked.

Evie stepped into his line of sight at his shoulder, standing beside him and gazing out into the heavy haze of rain as well. It was starting to obscure the Isle as the rain came harder. This forceful cutoff from watching the Isle annoyed Ben, but he still watched even though the Isle was now just a blur. It had already been hard to see it through the darkness of the night, but the lights from the harbor and some parts of the Isle itself had helped a bit with that obstacle.

"No," Evie answered. "Hard to. The room's empty without..." She glanced at him quickly.

"Without Mal," he finished for her. "It's alright to say her name around me, Evie. I'll move on. I've started to."

"Is that why you're standing here watching the Isle as if it might disappear if you look away for a second?"

"I'm just worried for her," he said stiffly.

"You still care about her."

"Of course, I still care about her." Ben sighed. His voice had risen, and he hated the way it sounded in the empty room. He lowered his voice back to a regular volume as he spoke again. "I still care about her, Evie. Of course, I do. I will recover. Everyone recovers from heartbreak eventually. But, I can't help but worry. What if Uma and her gang attack her?"

"She'll be okay," Evie said. "We grew up there."

"But is that enough now?" Ben asked.

Evie shrugged a shoulder. "I have to believe she'll be okay. We both have to believe that. Or we'll go crazy."

Ben was silent for a moment, and he finally tore his gaze away from the window. It was too hard to see the Isle through the deluge now anyhow. He focused on Evie instead. She looked exhausted and as if she had been crying recently. "How are you holding up?"

Evie crossed her arms over her abdomen and gave a noncommittal shrug. Then she sniffled and looked away as fresh tears began rolling down her cheeks.

Ben hesitated a moment. He was normally good with comforting people, but given his current state of mind, he wasn't necessarily the best company. He couldn't make jokes as easily or laugh and smile to try to cheer someone up. His traditional go-to of taking someone for frozen yogurt to cheer them up wouldn't work at this hour either. So, he stepped forward and carefully drew her into his arms. If he had learned anything in the past few weeks without Mal, it was the importance of human touch. His mother typically gave him a hug whenever she saw him, and it was amazing how quickly this would cause him to drop his guard.

As he hugged her close, pressing her to him, she began crying harder. "H-how are you d-doing it?" she sobbed, clinging to the front of his blazer.

"Because I only see her face in my mind," Ben answered immediately. "I don't have to see her in class every day like you do with Doug." He rubbed her back, his hand passing smoothly over the silk of her blue pajamas.

"I-I know it was b-best, but it st-still hurts." Evie's body heaved with sobs, and Ben could feel her tears sliding down under the collar of his shirt from where she had buried her face against his chest at his throat and sternum.

Ben didn't have any good comforting words that he could immediately call to mind. Any that did sounded hollow and cliche. So he just squeezed her tighter, one hand pressed into the small of her back while the other stroked her hair. He could feel his newly healed skin pull taut as his palm pressed flat into her spine, but it didn't cause him to wince like it would have a week ago when the stitches had still been in place.

She seemed content to just be held while she cried, so that's what Ben did. He held her even when he thought it might be time to let go. That was another thing he had learned about wanting to be comforted himself the past few weeks. It was that people always let go too soon. It was best to let the person who needed the comforting break the hug. They could decide when was the time to stop.

And Ben knew Evie deserved all the comforting she wanted. It had been just over a week ago, maybe ten or eleven days at most, since her breakup with Doug. By now, Ben had heard both sides of the story and had worked out how it all fit together. Basically, Doug had begun to be suffocating to Evie. He was insecure about their relationship, and Ben guessed this was because Evie was by far the most beautiful and popular girl in school. Evie had been bothered by his constant need of reassurance. In response, she had started to become liable to lash out at him. Claiming this was not healthy and was starting to make her draw on her villain roots again, Evie had ended it. When Ben had asked Doug about it, Doug had confirmed that Evie had been unmovable in her decision. She had been crying while telling him it was over, but she had stayed certain of her decision. Now, Ben could see how Mal and Evie had both made the difficult choice to do what they thought was best for themselves and their sanity. No one deserved to stay in a relationship that boxed them in even if they were in love. Sometimes, love just wasn't enough.

Evie finally shifted to pull away, and Ben released her. His hands dropped to his sides as he watched her closely. Then, he reached across his desk and slid the tissue box over to her. "Are you going to be alright? Maybe you should try to get some sleep."

"Thanks. Are you going to try to sleep?" Evie asked, dabbing at her eyes with a tissue she had grabbed from the box.

"I doubt it," Ben said.

"Then do you mind if I just stay here for a while?" Evie asked. "There's no one else to talk to right now. Even if it was daytime, Jay and Carlos don't really understand. And Lonnie and Jane are friends with Doug. I mean, you are too, but..." She trailed off as if she had just realized how awkward she might be making this for Ben.

But Ben shook his head. "It's alright. I know what you mean. I understand. You can stay. If you like, we can go down to the kitchen and make some tea or hot chocolate."

Evie tossed her used tissue into the trash bin beside Ben's desk. "I'd like that, thanks."

A fork of lightning and a following crash of thunder made them both turn back to the window. A moment passed, and another bolt of lightning struck across the sky, illuminating the Isle briefly.

"Do you think she's okay?" Evie asked.

"You said she will be," Ben said, but he wondered if Evie had just said that to comfort him. In reality, she was probably just as scared for Mal as he was.

* * *

Uma's fist connected with Mal's jaw and sent her sprawling into the mud. Mal could taste blood from where one of Uma's large rings had cut her lip. "Do you see who's top dog now?" Uma shouted, and her crew laughed. For inhabiting such a small ship, there sure were a lot of them. They had formed a circle around Uma and Mal as soon as the fight had begun.

Mal hadn't gone looking for a fight when she left her loft that night. She had just planned on visiting some of the night merchants for some food and other supplies that she had noticed were in low stock in her mother's loft. But as soon as she had stepped foot into the market square, Uma's crew had seemed to pour from every alley and crevice that could hold even the slimmest cockroach of a villain. She had so far avoided Uma, or maybe Uma had been watching and left her alone till now. Either way, Mal hadn't been expecting a fight. Especially not in the rain.

The rainwater dripped from Uma's dreadlocks as she loomed over Mal. She was leaning over, her hands on her knees as she sneered down at Mal. "Aw, look at the little princess. All that pampering in Auradon really did soften you."

Mal growled and swiped at Uma's legs with one of hers, but Uma stepped out of the way with a laugh. The mud was slowing Mal down considerably. They had been fighting long enough that Mal had gotten in a few punches, but Uma was quicker in the mud. The thickening mud sucked at Mal's boots, and the rain made her shiver. She had only dressed for a quick sprint into the market, and it had only been drizzling then. Now, the rain felt like pellets against her skin, and she could already feel the cold in her bones. It made her stiff and slow regardless of how much she desired to pin Uma down in the mud and show her that she was still capable of taking care of herself just fine.

Uma straightened and swiped her long hair back over her shoulder. She held her hand out to the side, her eyes still trained on Mal's face. Harry Hook stepped forward and placed a long object in Uma's open hand. For one wild moment, Mal thought it was a sword and that Uma was about to strike the final blow. But then Uma stepped forward and dangled the object over Mal's nose.

It was Fairy Godmother's wand.

"I don't understand," Mal said, and made to push herself up. But Uma pressed a muddy boot to Mal's chest and shoved her back down, forcing all the air from Mal's lungs.

"Oh, she doesn't understand," Uma cooed, and her crew laughed as if on cue. "This is the real wand. I was outside the barrier when you foolishly let me go at the cotillion. I saw the opportunity, and I took it. I waited in the waters just outside the barrier for the rest of the night. I knew that Fairy Godmother would return the wand to the museum shortly after the party, so I watched the party until it ended. An hour before dawn, I knew no one would be awake. No one but the silly little guard at the museum would notice if I just walked right in and stole the wand. Luckily, I had memorized an invisibility spell from your spell book. And so-" Uma snapped her fingers, "like that, I simply walked in and walked out with the most powerful weapon in Auradon."

Mal struggled under the weight of Uma's foot, trying to push it off. "Oh yeah? If you've had it for a month, then why haven't you used it by now? Can't figure out how to work it?"

Uma scowled and pressed her foot harder into Mal's chest, causing Mal to gasp. The heel of the boot was digging into Mal's sternum. "Because, I've been biding my time. And they haven't even noticed it was missing. You really shouldn't have showed me that trick of duplicating the wand. Now they just have a fake on display." She laughed. "I've been gathering troops, rallying the villains in my name. And now, the time has almost come to bring down the barrier and take Auradon for myself."

Harry cleared his throat, and Uma shot a dark, yet flirtatious look his way. "Of course, I meant us, darling."

Harry frowned but didn't say anything.

Uma turned back to Mal, still holding the wand aloft. "Soon, your pretty boy Ben won't know what hit him. Because, guess what? We're gonna kill him."

This time, the air left Mal's lungs without the extra push from Uma. Mal growled and drew up her strength suddenly to shove Uma's knee hard to the side, which caused her boot to finally dislodge from Mal's sternum. Uma stumbled, coming down to her knee in the mud. Mal seized the lapels of Uma's jacket and tugged her down into the mud. "Don't you lay a hand on him," Mal growled, attempting to move to get on top of Uma and grab the wand out of her hand.

But Uma kept her arm with the wand fully outstretched. With a flick of her wrist, she cast it away into the mud at Harry's feet. He picked it up, wiped it on his pants, and pocketed it.

Mal growled and made to get up, but Uma tugged her back down and moved to straddle her chest.

"Your time is up, princess," Uma hissed. She closed her hands around Mal's neck.

"No," Mal choked. She tried to pry Uma's hands away from her throat where they had closed in a vice grip and were cutting off her airway. Spots started to dance before her eyes. Between that, the rain, and the mud, Mal could barely see Uma above her. All she could discern was the maniacal grin on Um'a face, the feel of her hands squeezing the life out of her, and the laughs and cheers of the surrounding onlookers.

Mal's vision blurred, and she bucked her hips wildly, trying to throw Uma off. Uma's grip loosened enough that Mal was able to break her grip entirely. She reached up and seized Uma's throat now. She didn't have a good grip as her hand was slick with mud and water, but it was enough to catch Uma off guard and wipe the smirk from her face. "You won't win, Uma," Mal said with difficulty. Her throat felt sore already, which seemed to fit in with the rest of her aches that made her too stiff to move.

Uma knocked her hands away and stood. "We'll see, princess. But I've got the upper hand. And you won't be running to tip Ben off either. I think I've made my point." She turned and motioned for her crew to head out. But then she stopped. "Oh, wait." She turned back to Mal, smiling broadly as she approached. She crouched beside Mal. "I forgot something." As Mal was about to retort, Uma raised her arm and brought her elbow down hard against Mal's face.

Bright pain shot through Mal's head. And then she dropped unconscious.

* * *

As Uma left with her party arm-in-arm with Harry Hook, laughing and holding the wand aloft triumphantly like a baton, one of the crew hung back. He waited until his comrades were out of sight and then walked over to Mal. She looked so harmless lying there unconscious in the mud. He couldn't believe that he had ever been afraid of her.

Gil bent to pull her limp form out of the sticky mud. With a few maneuvers of her limbs and his own, he scooped her up into his arms. He started off in the opposite direction Uma had taken, holding Mal to his chest like a child as he headed for her loft on the other side of the block.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N from original upload on fanfiction.net (1/16/2018): Hey, guys! After a few months' hiatus from fanfiction after finishing all my chapter fics, I've finally returned with what I hope will be my longest and most in-depth story yet. As my last semester of college starts up, I can't guarantee when updates will come. My goal is to keep this story as fun to write for myself as possible, so I don't want to place unnecessary pressure on myself to crank out updates. But I hope to still strive for regular updates. Please, remember that reviews encourage me to write. They remind me that you guys actually enjoy what I do here and that I'm not just shouting into some void of the internet. Thanks for reading. Fave, follow, and review.
> 
> Foarrin


	2. Chapter 2

Mal woke with a searing headache positioned directly between her eyes. It took her a moment to remember what had happened as she opened her eyes and looked around. Why was she back in her room? How had she gotten up the stairs? She couldn't remember walking there. What had-

"Oh, you're awake."

Mal pushed herself up as quickly as she could, her muscles screaming in protest as she did so. She felt sore all over, but she was already on the defensive as she stood. Her gaze swept the room for the intruder. His voice had sounded familiar, but she couldn't place it. Her head was pounding even worse since she had sprung to her feet, and the room was dark. It was still night time, but the rain had stopped.

"Who's there?" Mal tried to make her voice as hard and commanding as possible. She didn't want to appear as weak as she felt.

A shadow separated itself from the doorframe that marked the divide between her room and her bathroom. "Relax, Mal, it's me. Gil." He had his hands at his sides, and there was no visible weapon in sight. Still, Mal wasn't fool enough to let down her guard just because of that. He was still one of Uma's crew and a resident of the Isle.

"What do you want?" she asked. It was hard to focus on his face in the darkness even as her eyes adjusted. There weren't a lot of lights on this block that worked any more, so the only light infiltrating the room was that of the moon and any escaped rays of light from the night pub down the street. "Why did you help bring me here? Shouldn't you be with Uma?" She suddenly looked up, but she ignored the surge of pounding in her head. "Uma. What time is it? How long have I been out? I have to warn Ben."

"Mal." Gil stepped forward. "Relax. I know you have a lot of questions. Let's get you cleaned up first though." He moved closer and began peeling her jacket back. It was so caked with dried mud that the mud cracked and pieces fell to the ground as he removed it. She would have objected to him removing her clothes and insisted she do it herself, but she could feel it was futile. The clothes felt like they had been suctioned to her skin, maybe even to her bones. There was no way she could remove them by herself.

She winced as he pulled it free from her arms. It felt like ripping off a layer of skin with how tightly it had been glued to her form. "No, I need to get out and warn Ben." She paused, trying to read Gil's face as he tossed her jacket to the floor and tugged at the hem of her shirt. "You can help. Please." If he had rescued her, maybe that meant he had cut ties with Uma. Maybe he was secretly good as well.

But Gil just sighed and pulled her shirt up. Mal raised her arms to allow him to strip it off her. Modesty was not even a concept on the Isle. It was laughable really. Because the Isle only received leftovers from Auradon, a lot of things were in short supply. This included clothing. Some of the weaker residents that couldn't defend themselves against the thieves of the Isle didn't even have more than one outfit at a time. So when they had to wash their clothes at one of the waterways, well...

"Gil." Mal's patience was wearing thin, though it was mostly due to her consistent headache.

"I don't know, Mal," Gil said. "What Uma's got planned..." He fell silent as he unbuttoned her purple jeans. Or at least they used to be purple. Now, they were completely brown with mud. He pulled the ruined fabric down her legs, having to give a extra tug to the fabric around each upper thigh where the fabric had pulled the most taut as the mud dried.

Mal gripped his shoulders to keep her balance as she stepped out of the jeans. She straightened back up and crossed her arms over her bare midriff. "And what does Uma have planned exactly? She said..." She swallowed, remembering now what Uma had said about Ben. "Is she really going to kill Ben?" But, she already knew the answer. Growing up on the Isle had taught her to trust no one, but that you could trust when threats were real. She could feel hot anger and fear writhing in her stomach. "She's going to kill Ben and his parents and take the throne, isn't she?"

Gil gave a solemn nod. "Come on, you need a shower. You'll feel better. Can you, um," he glanced down her body once and back up to her face, "can you manage the rest?"

Mal nodded. Her underwear had been spared from the mud, and it was now dry. "Yeah." She walked around him and stepped into the bathroom. She reached above the sink, standing on her tiptoes to do so. With a few turns of her wrist, the naked bulb there screwed the rest of the way into the socket and blinked on. The bulb had been growing dimmer in the weeks since Mal's return, and the light switch no longer worked. So, she had resulted to unscrewing the bulb to save it's diminishing power. Now, a faint light threw the bathroom into sharp focus. Everything was veiled in shadow, but Mal didn't need much light to operate when she had grown up here and little had changed to the bathroom since then.

She turned on the water in the shower, stripped off her remaining clothes, and got in without waiting. There was no point when the Isle had never had hot water delivered to it. Ice cold showers were all they had. Honestly, she was lucky to have running water at all. Most people didn't have that luxury, but Maleficent had bullied her way into one of the few remaining city blocks that still had water pumped into the building.

Mal pressed a hand against the cold tile wall, her vision blurring for a second as the water initially hit her skin.

"Are you okay?" Gil asked from the doorway.

Mal closed her eyes, forcing herself to take several deep breaths. "Yeah, I'm fine. Can you go to my dresser and lay out a change of clothes?"

She only opened her eyes once she had heard his footsteps retreat into her bedroom. Accepting his assistance in undressing was one thing, but having him watch her bathe was entirely different. She rinsed the mud off her body as quickly as possible while listening intently to Gil's movements in the adjacent room. He opened and shut drawers too quickly for her liking. Either he didn't know what to pick out or he was finding it all very fast.

The mud was adhered to her skin in several places where her clothes could not shield her from the filth. This was mainly her neck and face, but there was also mud dried in her hair. It took a while to wet the mud thoroughly enough to tease it out of her hair with her fingers. But the time she was done, the bottom of the tub was flecked with bits of mud. Luckily, though, the water that had run brown from her body was now clear again, and she felt as clean as she could get without soap or shampoo. She had run out of both the second week back, and she hadn't found any more from the garbage trolls yet.

She turned off the shower, got out, and began to dry herself with a small crumpled hand towel by the sink. The shower had cleared her head a bit, both mentally and physically. The ice cold water had numbed the headache to a dull throb. And now her mind was racing. She had to get back to Ben. She had to beat Uma to Auradon. Someone in Auradon would know what to do. And if not, then at the very least, Mal would go back to the museum and steal her mother's spell book that she had donated before she left the second time. She would feel better even with the smallest amount of magic on her side.

Gil was sitting on the edge of Mal's bed when she returned from the bathroom after unscrewing the lightbulb again. "Thanks," she said, seeing that he had managed to do what she asked and had gotten out clothes for her. And he had been smart enough to not return to the bathroom to watch her. He did, however, watch her as she got dressed.

"What?" Mal asked with a huff as she finished fastening her bra and pulled on a ragged t-shirt. It was frayed at the hem and had a hole under one of the arms.

"Nothing," Gil said. He shifted his gaze to his hands that he had draped together between his knees as he slouched forward.

Mal glowered at him but didn't press the matter. She finished getting dressed before retrieving her boots from the floor and taking them to the window.

"Hey," Gil said, suddenly on his feet. "What are you doing?"

"Getting the mud off," Mal answered, sliding the window up with a grunt. It always swelled and got stuck in the frame after a heavy rain. She leaned out the window and hung one boot out the window as well and began to beat and scrape it against the brick exterior to chip away the dried mud. "Why do you-" But she stopped mid-sentence, her eyes traveling up to the sky. The light from the moon shouldn't have been coming from that direction. The moon was positioned wrong as if it had reversed in the sky, which could only mean one thing. She withdrew back into the bedroom and turned instantly on Gil. "How long was I unconscious?" she growled.

Gil held up his hands. "Now listen, Mal, I-"

"How. Long. Was. I. Unconscious?" Mal repeated.

"Almost twenty-four hours."

Mal dropped her shoes and launched herself at Gil. They collapsed to the bed with her straddling his chest and her hands at his throat. But being bigger than she was, he easily rolled them over and instead pinned her beneath him.

"Mal, listen to me!"

"You avoided my questions!" Mal snapped. "You did this on purpose. You were trying to stall for her!"

"Uma said to keep you here until after the barrier was down." Gil grabbed her wrists as she made to ram her hand into his nose.

Dread spread through Mal, coating her veins in ice. "You only rescued me because she asked." She deflated slightly. She had wanted so badly to believe that he was good and would possibly help her get off the Isle. Of course, now, she was berating herself for not seeing his real intent sooner. If he had really wanted to help, he would have told her more or rushed her to get ready instead of letting her take her time in the bathroom. But as instantly as dread had chilled her, hot anger swept in behind it and lit a fuse in her that was not going to easily be put out. She struggled against him, trying to buck him off and bite at any skin she could reach, but he stayed well out of reach and kept her pinned firmly.

"Mal, I had to obey her," Gil said. His eyes looked wet, glistening in a such a way that Mal knew he was on the verge of crying. "I have to keep you here until they've reached the palace and send a signal or she'll kill all my siblings."

Mal momentarily went still. Gil had six or seven siblings if she remembered correctly, and he was the eldest by several years. But any sympathy that had been rising to replace the anger was instantly pushed back from a new thought. "You said she's going to kill Ben and his parents. You and I both know she won't stop there. Anyone who doesn't agree or comply with her rule, she'll kill or enslave. How many young kids do you think will be among those casualties?"

Gil shook his head, though his grip on her lessened a fraction. "I can't help that, Mal. My family comes first."

"As does mine," Mal said and used all of her strength to bolt upward and headbutt him.

Gil recoiled, and Mal was able to shove him off. She burst into motion, pulling on her boots, grabbing her jacket, and running for the door. But Gil was suddenly pulling her back. He turned her around.

"You can't leave!" he hissed, pressing her against the door and pinning her hands and feet. His nose was bleeding, the blood running into his mouth and down his chin. He spat some of the blood on the floor before looking back at her. "Please, Mal, just stay until I get the signal." The blood from his nose ran faster as it became saturated with his tears. "My brothers and sisters. She'll kill them in front of me."

"Gil, I will try to help you. I won't let that happen, but you've got to let me go. Help me. Ben will protect you and your family," Mal said even as she struggled against him, trying to use the door as leverage to push him off her as he held her hands to her chest between them.

Gil shook his head. "She took them with her. If she sees you, she'll slaughter them. I can't take that risk. You can't beat her, Mal. Not any more."

"Yes, I can!"

"Mal, she beat you into unconsciousness! You might even have a concussion, and you think you can beat her? She's bringing down the barrier tonight. Then she'll have even more magic at her fingertips. It's hopeless, Mal."

"Nothing is hopeless," Mal said. She thoroughly believed that. And if Gil turned out to be right, she would find that out for herself when she died trying to protect Auradon and her friends there. Uma would have to kill her before she stopped.

"Please." Gil twisted his head to wipe some of the blood and tears away on the shoulder of his jacket. "Please, just stay for a few more hours. Then I'll let you go."

"No," Mal said. She tried twisting out of his grip, struggling to dislodge his hold on any part of her. But her hands were trapped, and so were her feet as he was standing on them. "More people will die than ever! It will be chaos."

Gil just shook his head. "I told you. My family comes first. Please, I've been nice, Mal. I don't want to do this the hard way...the way Uma wanted me to do it."

Mal's eyes darkened. "Why are you trying so hard to protect your family? They'd sell you out in a minute flat. Everyone here is that way."

"You don't know what you're talking about!"

"I know Gaston beat you when you were little! I've heard what happened to your mother, how she died. I've heard what he does to your little sisters at home." Mal was pushing all the right buttons, she knew. She needed him to get angry and slip up. Just enough change in grip where she could escape him.

But instead of making him cry more like she had intended, Gil's grip hardened. And that was when she could see the Gaston in him. He cried out in fury and shoved her aside with animalistic force. But as he did so, he stepped off only one of her feet. The other remained pinned beneath his own. There was a sickening snap that was only overshadowed by Mal's cry that pierced the night air.

Mal crashed to the floor. Her vision swam with blotches of darkness and static. It felt as though her left calf had been torn in half. She could feel blood coating her skin and the floor. She saw Gil crouch beside her, his face screwed up in horror. And then for the second time in twenty-four hours, she dropped unconscious.

* * *

"Oh my gosh," Evie breathed. She lowered her mug of steaming hot cocoa and chanced a glance at Ben. "Are you seeing this too?"

Ben's expression was unreadable, but his own mug shook in his hand. He put it down on the desk, not looking away from the window. They had both been up late again in his office. They had just been chatting about their days quietly and looking out over the Isle when it had started. A purplish-blue sparkle had burst into being above the center of the Isle, hovering for a moment.

As they watched, the sparkling light grew and began to extend, forming a ring as it grew bigger and bigger. Constantly enlarging itself, it descended and made to encompass the entire Isle. But Ben didn't wait for that to happen.

"Someone's bringing down the barrier," he said. Instantly, he turned to his desk and wiggled the mouse of his desktop computer. "Come on," he muttered as he clicked open a program and waited for it to load. "Faster!" He slammed his hand on the desk, causing Evie to jump. The program loaded a second later, and Ben clicked on a link that read 'Isle Cam 1'. The screen's image changed to that of the Isle's entrance where the magical golden bridge connected when summoned. Standing there at the edge was a crowd of people, Uma and Harry Hook at the front. Uma had the wand held straight up, pointing it toward the origin of the sparkling light. She was grinning and laughing. She said something, but the camera was only meant for video, not audio, so they didn't hear what she said that made her crew behind her laugh.

Ben growled and seized the phone on his desk. He pressed a red button on the base and raised the receiver to his mouth. "Attention citizens of Auradon." His voice sounded inside and outside the building as if it had been magically amplified, and Evie guessed there were speakers positioned all over Auradon's main city for emergency announcements like this. "This is your king speaking. The barrier on the Isle of the Lost is being brought down by the villains. Please seek protection immediately. It is recommended that you evacuate the city." As soon as he finished speaking, he slammed the receiver down on the base, hesitated, and then raised it again. He dialed a number this time.

"Ben-" Evie began, but he held up a hand to silence her. She set her mug down beside his.

Ben drummed his fingers on the desk as he waited for the phone to ring. Finally, he began speaking. "Prince Phillip, this is King Ben. I'm initiating the emergency alert pyramid. Some villains are bringing down the barrier." He instantly hung up and turned to Evie. "We have to get out of here. They'll come here first."

"What? But, what about the others?"

"Phillip is in Charmington. He'll call Cinderellasberg. And they'll call-"

"I meant everyone here! And at school," Evie said. "Why are you running?"

Ben's expression was panicked, and he was obviously trying and failing to appear calm as his face contorted several times in his effort to change his expression. He huffed. "Evie, you and I both know that even though that island is small, there are a lot of angry people compiled into it. They somehow have Fairy Godmother's real wand and are going to come here. We don't have an army. My father was so sure we wouldn't need one because the Isle's barrier could only be brought down by the wand that created it. He thought we were safe. We have no protection whatsoever except a police force that Uma will be able to take out in a minute with that wand."

"So, you're just going to let her take over?"

"Fairy Godmother will handle it," Ben said.

"How?! She doesn't have a wand! She's one person!" Evie's heart was suddenly in her throat. "You mean no one ever had a plan for what to do if this happened?"

"No! That's what I'm trying to tell you," Ben said. "People thought it was impossible. The only plan ever was that Fairy Godmother would be around to clean up any messes the villains created."

Evie scrubbed a hand over her face. "You're leaving this up to one person? Ben, stand and fight."

Ben looked at her with wide eyes. Scared eyes. "Evie. No. We barely held our own against Uma's crew that one night on the Isle. You saw how many more people were standing with her there. And now they have magic. We don't. Or at least, not many of us do. And magic was outlawed for the longest time. No one's been trained in the magical arts for years. Listen to me. We. Are. Screwed. We have to run. Then we can make a plan, but we're trapped if we wait here."

Evie's stomach was in knots. "You're...you're serious."

"Yes, now-"

The door to Ben's study opened, and three people rushed inside.

"Ben, you have to leave," Fairy Godmother said. She was flanked by Jane and Chad, both looking groggy and hurriedly dressed as Jane was wearing bunny slippers, and Chad's t-shirt was on backwards.

"That's what I-" Ben began, but Evie spoke over him.

"Fairy Godmother, Ben's saying that we've got to run and that the only thing or only one capable of protecting this place is you," Evie said, her voice rising in pitch as she spoke. Evie's stomach only clenched tighter when Fairy Godmother nodded.

"There are some in Auradon I know that still practice magic, but it will take some time to get them here. And there is some magic I can do without a wand. It's limited, but it will be enough to hold Uma off for a little while, I hope."

"And then what?" Evie asked. "How are you planning to push them back?"

"Ben will have to get to Cinderellasberg. There is a large collection of magical weapons there that will be useful." She turned to Ben. "You'll have to travel by land though. With the barrier gone, Uma's ship will be able to follow you too quickly."

Ben nodded, but Evie stomped her foot in frustration. "Fairy Godmother, we can fight them. Surely, we can. Aren't there weapons here?"

"No, Beast had me destroy all magical items in this city shortly after the creation of the barrier. And he is now seeing the errors of his ways. We all are. He's in a panic as well, but he and Belle are overseeing the evacuation at the school. They sent me up here for you."

"But-" Evie began again.

"Evie," Jane said, speaking for the first time. She seemed fully awake now. "Evie, listen to her. We can't win a fight from within Auradon City. But there are resources outside the city that may help."

"So, what, you want to let Uma take over, lead her into a false sense of security, and then retaliate when she's not expecting it?"

"Yes," Fairy Godmother said. "That's exactly what I'm suggesting. The first step, regardless, is to get out immediately. You weren't alive in the last war when we first imprisoned the villains. It wasn't as simple as capturing them and walking them in a neat line across the bridge. There was blood and death. Everywhere. The city is too compact for magic to be used in the streets. Buildings were toppled. People crushed and buried in rubble. With my wand, Uma doesn't need a spell book. She will be able to walk in here and disable anyone in her way without batting an eye."

Evie swallowed. "Then how will running lead to us being able to defeat her?"

"Because," the woman said. "It will buy us time. Time to gather forces and plan. Right now, all the heroes are scattered in their own homes throughout the kingdom. We will need all those able to fight, along with any magical tools we can find. Do you understand?"

Evie nodded, finally convinced that running did not mean they were giving up. Ben and Fairy Godmother were not suggesting to be cowards. They were being smart and rational. "Ok. But...what about Mal? And Carlos and Jay and everyone?"

"Everyone in the school is being evacuated to neighboring safe points in separate cities," Fairy Godmother said. "You may join them. As for Mal, I don't know what to suggest. Maybe she's fine."

Evie shook her head and looked at Ben. "She's not fine. If she was fine, she would be fighting Uma right now for the wand to stop her. You know that."

Ben nodded. "Fairy Godmother, we've got to get to Mal."

"No," Fairy Godmother said firmly. "You are going to Cinderellasberg tonight. Chad is taking you."

"No." Ben shook his head as he shifted his gaze to Chad. "Absolutely not. Not without knowing Mal is safe."

"But Mal may already be..." Jane trailed off at the looks of horror and fury that came from Evie and Ben respectively at her suggestion. "I just mean...I...nevermind."

Chad fished his keys out of his pockets and pried open the keyring. He slid one of the keys off and tossed the rest to Ben. "Those keys will get you into my good car, the palace in Charmington, and my mom's old home in Cinderellasberg. Take the black car. I'll take my other one."

Ben frowned, twisting the keyring around his finger. "But what? Where are you going?"

Chad nodded to the window behind Evie and Ben. "You just focus on getting out of the city. Your safety is key. I'll go get Mal."


	3. Chapter 3

Chad waited until the stream of villains rushing across the golden bridge from the Isle had cleared. As quickly as they had come, they disappeared into the streets and alleys of the city. The screaming had already started, along with the sounds of maniacal laughter, breaking glass, and car horns. He had watched from the side street where he had hidden his van. It was an large van with sliding doors on either side of the body that opened to a cleared-out space in the back that functioned mainly as the bedroom and sitting room on camping trips his parents had once taken him on when he was little. The shag carpet was faded and crushed down, but the pillows that were strewn across the back made up for that slight discomfort. The van was stocked in other ways besides pillows and carpet though. However, he had never imagined it would come in handy outside of camping, tourney, and spontaneous road trips with his friends or teammates. Now, suddenly, he saw the supplies more as survival tools.

He had watched the villains for any signs of Mal, half-hoping and half-dreading that they were dragging her along as captive. He would have at least known she was alive then. But, he hadn't seen her. So, when the bridge was finally empty, he shifted into drive and sped across to the Isle.

The beams of the headlights of the van caught on trashcans and rain gutters as he drove. The metallic glint of each reflection sent a knife of adrenaline through Chad's chest. He was aware of the fact that, at any moment, someone could jump out and ambush the van. He was driving so slowly through the tight streets that it would have been easy to trap the van and drag him out. But, with any luck, every single villain was already across the bridge in Auradon. Somehow, this thought did not comfort him much. That meant the city and its citizens were under siege and in the most dire situation they had seen in sixteen years since the original war with the villains.

The first sign of movement sent Chad's heart skyrocketing into his throat. He stopped the van and watched a few silhouettes move down the street in front of him. He couldn't make out exactly who they were, but there was an elderly woman and several children ranging from toddler to about six years old. His breathing resumed; he hadn't even realized he had held it at the sight of the villains. Maybe there were still some stragglers on the Isle; or maybe, those who were truly too young or too old to fight were staying behind until the fighting was over. Either way, Chad didn't relax. It was likely now that some capable people had stayed behind just because they were too lazy or thought themselves too good to do the fighting. After all, didn't some villains want all the dirty work done for them?

He began crawling through the streets again, his eyes darting to each alley opening as he drove up on them. Ben and Evie had been clear in their instructions on how to get to Mal's loft, but maneuvering the van and trying to get there in the darkness was proving more difficult than he had anticipated. There weren't many lights on the Isle, so his headlights and the moon were the only things guiding him.

* * *

Mal screamed, tears running down her face. "Stop! STOP!"

Gil frowned, his hands still wrapped around Mal's calf. "Mal, I have to stop the bleeding. And set it."

Mal had woken up a few moments previous to find that Gil was kneeling beside her and was attempting to fix her leg. However, this wasn't exactly an easy or even possible task. Both bones in Mal's left calf had snapped, and one of them had broken through her skin. The hand towel Gil had grabbed from the bathroom and wrapped around her leg was soaked with blood. It wasn't gushing out, so the bloody towel looked a lot worse than the situation actually was. The blood wasn't the main problem obviously.

"Just let me try," Gil said. His eyelashes looked damp in the light; he had turned on the bulb in the bathroom.

"No, you've done enough," Mal said, her words coming out in a hiss due to the pain. She clenched her teeth together and swallowed. "Look, you've gotten what you want. I can't leave."

"This isn't what I wanted though, Mal. I'm so sorry. It was an accident," he said.

Mal did believe this, but it was hard to think over the pain and her other thoughts trying to crowd her brain. She couldn't walk. How was she supposed to help Auradon and Ben and her friends if she couldn't even leave her bedroom floor? Sure, she figured she could use magic to heal. But writing spells on the fly was difficult. She would have to think out the wording very carefully because if the phrasing was wrong, the spell could have unforeseen consequences or other effects. That was why when a spell worked like it was meant to, it was immediately written down in a spell book. But her mother's spell book was over a mile away locked in the museum. Plus, it would not have been in Maleficent's nature to include a healing spell in her collection.

"I know. Just..." Mal sighed, trying to think. "Ok, let's brace it and then move me to the bed. Then I can...no, I can't use magic to heal it. Crap."

"Why not?" Gil asked, sitting back on his heels.

"The barrier."

Gil's eyes instantly widened and flitted about her face. "Oh. Right. They brought it down while you were out."

Mal's body suddenly felt as heavy as lead. "Oh." That was all she could say. From what Gil had been saying, she had known it would be soon, but knowing that it had already happened was startling. "I can try to heal it then." Maybe.

Trying to think of rhyming words or words at all while she was in so much pain and panicking was difficult. She couldn't just do a spell to stop the blood; that might accidentally stop her heart. She couldn't say to push the bone back in; it might not put it back properly and screw her leg up even more. The truth was she needed time to think, which meant she needed the pain to go away. But medication was non-existent on the Isle. They had plants they sometimes used for injuries and pains, but there weren't any stocked in the loft.

Mal closed her eyes for a moment and swallowed. When she opened her eyes again, she pinned Gil with her dark eyes. "We'll have to brace it as best we can. And then I'll need you to go find some boswellia or something for the pain."

Gil nodded and then looked uncertain. "I can't really...I already tried..." He looked at her leg. "Maybe we should just prop it up."

Mal nodded, and Gil rose to his feet. He went to the bed and came back with Mal's pillows. He stacked both and then gingerly gripped her ankle and positioned his other hand behind her knee. When he tried to lift her leg onto the pillows, the broken bones shifted, and a piercing scream tore from Mal's throat. Fresh tears welled in her eyes.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry," Gil murmured as he propped her leg on the pillows. "I'm so sorry."

"It's-"

The door to Mal's room burst open. Chad rushed into the room, a sword in hand. He pointed the tip of it to Gil's throat. "Get away from her," Chad growled.

"Chad?" Mal blinked. Maybe the pain was making her hallucinate now. That totally could not be Chad.

Chad glanced down at her before focusing back on Gil who had gone as still as stone. "I said get away from her."

"It was an accident, Chad," Mal explained. "He was trying to help. He's going to get some herbs for the pain so I can heal myself with magic."

Chad frowned and pressed the tip of the sword into Gil's throat. Not enough to draw blood but enough to add weight to his following threat. "Go get the herbs then. But if you bring anyone back with you, I will make you wish it was your leg that was broken."

Gil nodded, so Chad lowered his sword. Instantly, Gil was on his feet and out the door.

Chad replaced his sword in the scabbard at his hip and then looked down at Mal. "Are you alright? Or...as alright as you can be right now?"

Mal nodded. "Just hurts. I think the bleeding has stopped."

Chad nodded, surveyed her for a moment, and then moved to the bed. He removed the blanket and folded it up. Kneeling beside her, she lifted her head a bit, and he was able to slide the makeshift pillow beneath her head.

"Thanks," she said.

"Do you need anything before Gil gets back?" Chad asked.

"There's a pad of paper and a pencil in the drawer of the nightstand. I need to start working on a spell to heal this," Mal said.

Chad nodded and retrieved the items.

Within the hour, Gil had returned with the plant Mal had sent him after, she had chewed up the leaves, and she had written several trial spells. All were crossed out except the final one. She had found loopholes in the wording of all the previous ones that would have been severely damaging if said aloud. Finally with Chad sitting next to her on the floor, she said the spell she had written at the bottom of one of the pages. Immediately, her bones snapped back into place and the skin healed over.

Mal gasped from the sudden jolt of pain. She had known that would happen. Moving the bones at all was tough enough as it was.

She set aside the paper and pencil and then pushed herself up.

"Whoa, hold on," Chad said, pushing her back down. "You need to rest a bit."

"I can rest on the drive back," Mal said stubbornly. "Right now, we need to get on the road."

Gil looked up from his post at the window and shook his head. "I haven't had the signal yet."

"I don't care," Mal snapped.

Gil moved forward. Chad jumped to his feet and drew his sword. "I will cut you down right here if you touch her again."

Gil froze, hesitated a moment, and then nodded.

"It'll be ok," Chad said. "Uma won't know you let Mal go prematurely. We aren't going to the city." Mal had filled Chad in on the details of her ordeal while Gil had been gone.

"We aren't?" Mal asked.

"No, we're meeting up with Ben and Evie somewhere."

"Why?"

"I'll explain on the way. I don't want him-" Chad gestured at Gil with a jab of his sword, "-telling Uma where we're going or what we're doing."

Gil's shoulders slumped, defeated. "Fine. Leave. But if Uma finds out-"

"She won't," Chad said. "I'll have Mal in the back of the van. No one will see her."

Gil nodded and swallowed. He returned to the window. "Fine."

Chad helped Mal to her feet. The muscles in Mal's repaired leg were tight, but she didn't want to try any more magic to help her walk. The muscle just needed some stretching. Even so, Chad supported her as they walked down the stairs to the van. After Chad had made her comfortable with pillows and a blanket in the back of the van, they drove back through the Isle at a crawl.

* * *

Ben smacked the palm of his hand against the steering wheel. He had been like this for the past half hour on their way out of the city, though they had been in the car longer. The traffic flooding out of the city initially had been horrible and been at a standstill for the greater part of an hour. Now, they were speeding along steadily and had been for nearly thirty minutes. Over this period of time, he kept murmuring angrily to himself about how irresponsible they had all been in not preparing for a potential disaster with the barrier. Or he would lapse into silence, keep his eyes trained straight ahead, and grip the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. Occasionally he would turn on the radio, but all it ever was was static. He would turn it off again quickly and try again ten minutes later with the same depressing results. Ben had voiced his theory after the first encounter with static that Uma had probably cast a spell around the main city already that blocked all electronic communication. He was hoping to escape the reach of the spell and tune in to what the rest of the country was reporting about the siege.

"Hey, why don't we pull over at a gas station?" Evie asked softly. She couldn't stand the near silence and Ben's berating of himself and his dad any longer.

"No, we don't need gas," Ben answered.

"I know. I want a drink, and you need some fresh air."

"Fresh air isn't going to help the fact that citizens are likely being slaughtered or imprisoned right now. And I'm supposed to be their king." His grip on the wheel tightened.

"Yeah, well, they need their king to be calm and cool-headed right now, so pull over."

Ben reluctantly pulled over at the next gas station. While Evie went inside to buy them drinks for the long drive to Cinderellasberg, he got out and paced up and down the driver's side of the car. He knew Evie was right. What was done was done, and all he could do now was move forward by focusing on fixing the situation and then making sure it never happened again.

By the time they were on the road again, he was much calmer. A few minutes down the road though, he checked the status of the radio again and tensed at the following words: "We've just had an update that the palace has been taken."

* * *

"Jane, get out. You have to go," Fairy Godmother said.

Jane shook her head. She could feel the tears coming. "No, I won't leave you."

They had spent the past hour putting up protective shields around the palace. But, they had been very weak. Fairy Godmother didn't practice magic much anymore, and without her wand, her magic was significantly diminished. As for Jane, she had never been trained in magic, so all she could do was hold her mother's hands and try to concentrate on using what power she did have to aid her mother's enchantments.

But the shileds hadn't been enough, and they had known this. All it had done was bought them time. Now, as they stood in Ben's study with the doors locked and barricaded, they could hear the villains running down the hallway and yelling to each other. Some of them had started banging on the door and slamming something into the door.

"Jane, you're going," Fairy Godmother said. She moved over to a bookshelf next to Ben's desk and leaned her full weight against it. "Help me with this."

Jane helped her push the bookshelf over about a foot. A small space was open behind it that led to a door.

Fairy Godmother straightened. "It's an escape for the royal family. That's why this is where the study always is and why it has never been moved. Go, and I'll close it after you."

"No," Jane said, and now the tears started slipping free of her eyelashes. "They'll kill you."

"Not for sure, but it's a risk I'm willing to take."

The door began to rattle, and something in the door sounded as though it was bending under the weight of the villains' actions on the other side of the door.

"Come with me. Please!" Jane begged.

"No. Then they'll know there's another way in and out of this room. They can't find that out. It is to our advantage. You go." Fairy Godmother swallowed. "Get to your father, and he will protect you. He will show you your true power potential."

Jane's brow creased in confusion. All her life, her mother had downright refused to talk about her father to her. She didn't even know his name. "What? I, Mom, I don't have power like you do."

"You're right," Fairy Godmother said. As the villains rammed against the door again and one of the doors began to crack down the center, she pushed Jane into the space behind the bookshelf. "I haven't been honest with you. You weren't born for my type of magic - the kind that requires a wand to be truly focused and reach its highest potential. You have his magic. It is the most powerful kind, and I should have sent you to him to learn it ages ago, but I guess..." She swallowed, and Jane could heard the villains ram the door again. "This is a conversation for another time. And I hope I get the chance to explain. But please...dear one, you have to go."

Jane gave a shaky nod and put one hand on the door handle as her mother prepared to slide the bookshelf back into place. "I love you, Mom," she said.

"I love you too," Fairy Godmother said. "Go to Camelot. Your father is the high wizard Merlin." The voices of the villains rose, calling for assistance in ramming the door and breaking through the furniture barricaded against the door. "Good luck," she whispered, and then closed the gap between the wall and bookshelf, and Jane was left in darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N in regards to responses about Chad on fanfiction.net: A lot of you guys commented on Chad either being out of character or up to something sinister. I forgot to mention in my note at the end of the previous chapter that I typically write Chad differently from the movies. I try to keep everyone else in-character as much as possible, but with him, I like to make him a decent human being and relatively intelligent. This allows me more room to craft his character with a bit more depth than he is given in the movies. Hope you guys still enjoy and think this is an improvement on Chad.


	4. Chapter 4

Uma stood behind the desk in the study, her palms pressed flat against the cold surface of the wood. With her jaw clenched firmly shut, her tongue roamed over the back of her teeth, tracing each crevasse as she stared down the unsightly worm before her. Her gaze did not waver or flicker to any of the other dozen faces in the room. She only had eyes for him. "You," she finally said, "let her go?"

Gil shifted his weight from either foot. His gaze was downcast. He refused to make eye contact with her. But he nodded after a moment. "You said-"

"I said," Uma interrupted, "to keep her there until we reached the palace and sent a signal. Then you were to bring her over here to me. Did you not hear me say those words?"

"Actually." Harry leaned over her shoulder and said softly, "You never actually told him the second part."

"Well, it was implied!" Uma said sharply. She narrowed her eyes. "I have half a mind to kill you right here. Who knows where she could be."

"She's with Chad, and they're meeting up with Evie and Ben," Gil said. He twisted his hands together nervously. "That's all I know."

Uma snarled and straightened up. She walked around the desk and gripped the lapels of Gil's jacket. He was taller than she was, but the fear she struck in him diminished him so much that the physical size difference didn't matter. "That could be anywhere."

"I, I know," Gil said and swallowed.

Uma dropped her grip from him and took a step back. Her gaze was as sharp as the sword at her side. "Take him to the dungeon," she said to the room at large. Ignoring Gil's panicked look, she continued, "Put him in the cell across from his siblings, Harry. The one next to Fairy Godmother." Gil made a sound of protest.

"And, Harry." Uma turned to him and lowered her voice so that what she said next could only pass between the two of them. "In the morning, you will set out to track down Mal and her friends. Gil will go with you. If he tries to sabotage you at all, kill him."

* * *

Rage and guilt pulsed through Gil's veins as he sat in his cell. His siblings had spent several minutes reassuring him from their place across the aisle when he was first thrown into the cell. Now, they had settled in a huddle against one wall. He could see them clearly, and only one of them seemed to be harmed - a scratch ran down her cheek. He guessed that it was from Harry's hook. That thought made him clench his hands into fists on his knees.

He could hear Fairy Godmother in the cell next to him. She was sniffling softly with the occasional whimper, and the sound echoed in the loud dungeon. For all the modern renovations made to the rest of the palace, the dungeon seemed to have been stripped of them. All there was was concrete and steel bars and a cot in each cell. Absolutely barbaric. Then again, the cells probably hadn't needed an upgrade in the last two decades. All the criminals who would have been imprisoned here were on the Isle. Well, of course, they weren't now, but that wasn't the point.

"Gil?"

Gil leaned his head in the direction of Fairy Godmother's voice. "Yeah?" he replied weakly.

"On your way into the palace, did you...did you seem Jane perhaps?"

"I'm not sure what she looks like." Gil pulled one knee to his chest. "For her sake though, I hope she made it out. It's bad out there. It already looks so much like the Isle. Destruction everywhere. Fires in some of the buildings. Ransacking most everything else. Everything's overrun by those of us from the Isle. A lot of fighting over anything and everything."

"And Beast and Belle are gone." Fairy Godmother gave a sharp sob at this as soon as the words had left her.

Gil turned his body slightly toward the bars. "They...what do you mean? Did Uma catch them?"

"Harry did. He was talking about it as he brought me down here," the woman answered, and Gil could tell without seeing her face that there had to be tears coating her kind cheeks. "He killed them both as they were trying to protect some citizens that were fleeing."

Gil didn't respond. Fairy Godmother was fully sobbing now, and her crying echoed through the dungeon like that of a wounded animal.

After several minutes and once Fairy Godmother's sobs had quieted a fair amount, Gil said, "I understand why you all kept us there for so long now. This is what it must have been like before the barrier was put up. Our parents were monsters and bred us to be monsters just like them. We ruin every good thing we touch."

"You're not...you're not all monsters," Fairy Godmother answered.

Gil looked to his siblings in the opposite cell. All of them were watching him in silence. He sighed. "You're right. Not all of us are monsters, I guess. But we all have been or can be in one form or another, and that's what scares me the most. Uma will either break me or kill me."

* * *

"You're sure you can fix it?" Mal asked. She had her arms crossed over her chest and was leaning against the side of the van while Chad examined the flat tire. "Is it just a patch?"

Chad sighed and stood, dusting off the knees of his pants as he did so. "No, I'll have to take it off and get the spare out of the back. I think there were some nails I ran over on the Isle."

"Probably," Mal agreed. "Well, how long will it take? Aren't we still an hour outside of Charmington?"

"Yeah, and then we still have to drive on to Cinderellasberg. But at least we can stop by the palace and grab some supplies first. Probably some food too."

"I can run in and get us some food here," Mal said. They had managed to pull over at a local cafe when they discovered the flat, so at least they weren't totally stranded.

"Yeah, that might be best."

Mal went inside to order the food, leaving Chad to change the damaged tire alone. Honestly, she was glad for the time apart from him. The van felt stuffy, and Chad had kept asking her if she was ok and if she needed to stretch her newly repaired leg out in the back. She had been used to Ben's concern for her, but Chad's was strange. For the longest time, she had known him as simply a tourney player and Ben's best friend. But now, he was concerned about her. It felt odd...and comforting, both at the same time.

Nearly a half hour later, they were sitting in the back of the van with the sliding side door open to the sunshine. Chad had finished swapping the tires and checked the rest of them for damages. Luckily, it seemed that only the one had been punctured, so as soon as they finished eating, they could return to the road.

"Where will the people from Auradon City go?" Mal asked after swallowing a bite of cheeseburger.

Chad shrugged but looked thoughtful as he ate his own burger. He swallowed. "Home to their families. Basically everyone has extended family somewhere other than the city. I'm surprised some of them haven't caught up to us. I have a few cousins that should be headed back this way."

Mal just bit off a chunk of burger in response and stared at the smashed shag carpet. After a whole minute's silence, she spoke. "How many people do you think made it out?"

"The majority," Chad answered. "I don't think the primary goal was to kill. They wanted to seize control of the city first, didn't they?"

It was Mal's turn to shrug and she picked off a chunk of bun. "That would be my guess." She set the burger aside in its wrapper. "I feel that this is all my fault."

Chad finished his last bite with a frown. Once he had swallowed, he said, "Mal, this is not your fault."

"But it is," she said. "If I hadn't run away without explaining things to Ben properly, he wouldn't have come after me. An Uma wouldn't have captured him. And she wouldn't have been able to escape through the barrier after us. And she wouldn't have had my spell book. And-"

"That's a lot of things you couldn't control, Mal. You had no idea things would play out the way they did. You can't blame yourself for Uma's actions. We each choose our own path." Chad crumpled his burger wrapper into a ball and tossed it into a corner of the van. "Look, the only thing you can be in control of now is trying to stop her. Don't beat yourself up for what's in the past."

"Yeah, but I-"

"No," Chad said quickly to cut her off. Then he continued softly, "No, Mal. No 'but'. Come on. Either stay back here or get back up front. We'll figure out this mess when we meet up with Ben and Evie."

* * *

"Stop the car!"

Lonnie's foot hit the brake pedal so hard that she, Jay, and Carlos were all thrown forward in their seats as the car halted. "What?" Lonnie asked, looking back to Carlos in the back seat. But Carlos was already clambering out of the car.

Carlos sprinted over to Jane. She had been standing in the shadow of an alley, her phone out as she looked up the quickest walking route to Camelot. She didn't have a car, and even if she did, the streets out of the main city were jammed with traffic, wrecks, and fires. And, she figured, all the buses would be crowded or detoured, so they weren't reliable either. Walking was her best option.

"Carlos!" Jane threw her arms around him. Adrenaline was pumping through her. At first, she had been scared a villain kid had found her. Well, she guessed that was true, but this was the right villain kid - the one she had wanted to find her.

"I was so worried," Carlos said, pulling back to see her face. "I tried to call and text, but the phones are blocked."

"Yeah, I know," Jane said. "The only thing working for me is GPS, but it's really slow."

"Where are you headed?" Carlos asked. He glanced up and down the street and began tugging her toward the car before she could answer.

"Camelot," Jane said, climbing into the back seat after Carlos. Then her attention shifted to the front seats, and she grinned, relief flooding through her. Lonnie and Jay. "I'm so glad to see all of you." She sniffled and rubbed the back of her hand over her eyes.

Lonnie put the car back into drive and continued down the street. They had been on the edge of the city limits when Carlos made them stop.

"We're glad you're safe too," Lonnie said. "Have you seen anyone else? Where's Ben?"

"And Evie and Mal?" Jay put in.

"Ben and Evie left for Cinderellasberg. Chad went to the Isle to get Mal," Jane explained.

Jay and Carlos exchanged a concerned look. "Chad went to the Isle? Do you know if they made it back yet?" Jay asked.

Jane shook her head. "I...no, I had to leave. My mom-" She broke off, unable to verbalize the rest. She just couldn't face the reality that her mom was either imprisoned or even dead. She swallowed. "I, look, I just need to get to Camelot. Where are you guys headed?"

"We were going to go to my parents'," Lonnie said. "Why? What's in Camelot? That's all the way north past the border. Are we supposed to ask them for help?"

"I guess," Jane said quietly. "I mean...maybe? My mom wasn't specific. She just..." She huffed out a sigh. "She said I need to talk to Merlin."

"Ok," Lonnie said, though from her tone it was evident she was seeking a bit more of an explanation than that. "Well, we'll go to my parents' place. It's near the border. Then, I guess we'll discuss the idea of rallying Camelot and their army. My mom and dad will know the best strategy."

Jane nodded. She was glad Lonnie hadn't pried any more. She wasn't entirely ready to reveal her connection to the most powerful wizard in history.

Carlos reached for her hands where they were clasped tightly in her lap. He took one of them in his and rubbed the pad of his thumb over her knuckles. "We'll fix this," he said quietly.

Jane nodded, though tears pricked at the edges of her eyes. Her adrenaline, nerves, and emotions were all sky high. She was honestly surprised she hadn't passed out yet from shock at the day's events. But, she gave Carlos a weak smile, hoping he was right...hoping they wouldn't die trying to fix what had so quickly become so broken.


	5. Chapter 5

Sunlight streamed in through the high broad windows of the royal bedchamber. It would have been beautiful, elegant even. But the streets outside told the real tale - destruction and chaos had gripped the city. The blocks nearest the palace were devastated with litter, glass, and blood. Somewhere, there was yelling and crying. Somewhere a villain was doing unmentionable things to old and new enemies alike.

Yet things were still relatively quiet in the king's and queen's quarters.

"I think I could like it here," Uma said as she walked out of the closet. She pulled a golden silk robe closed over her midriff and knotted the sash. "Well, if things weren't so...bright."

Yes, that was really the only complaint she could form about the room. It was gorgeous, clean, and larger than her mom's restaurant and her bedroom combined. Belle's clothes that she had found in the walk-in closet fit her for the most part. She figured that if anything was too long, she would tear the gowns to make them fit. It wasn't as if she was unused to torn clothing. That's all they had on the Isle.

But here... Here, there was plenty of food. And clothes that felt soft, fluffy, silky, rough, itchy. She had never imagined that there were so many different textures or colors in the world of clothing alone. And even though she had grown up wanting to take and destroy everything within sight for pure spite alone, now she could imagine being malicious for a greater purpose. For heaven's sake, they had real hot running water! She hadn't gotten goosepimples up and down her arms when she had showered the night before like she did on the Isle. And afterward, she hadn't had to get dressed back in her same garments. No, Harry had wrapped her in the fluffiest towel she had ever seen, and they had laughed at their triumph over the city. How quickly they had accomplished it.

Harry.

Uma turned her eyes on him where he sat at the end of the unbelievably large bed. He had just pulled on his pants and had laid his hook aside on the soft sheets to lace his boots.

"Don't you think it's nice here?" Uma asked.

"Of course, but you're correct about the brightness." Harry straightened to look at her, one boot partially laced. "It needs some black. And red." His eyes lit up as a smirk curled his lips. "Lots and lots of red."

Uma laughed and swept over to him. She kissed his mouth softly, letting their lips linger together only a moment before she straightened up. "You remember the plan?"

Harry stooped to resume lacing his boot. "Take Gil with me to find our lovely friends."

"Yes. Remember, check Charmington first. It's the next largest city in Auradon. It's likely where Chad and Ben would have thought to go for support." Uma's eyes darkened as she crossed her arms over her chest. "And, Harry, remember to bring Mal and Ben back alive. I want the satisfaction of finishing them both off myself."

Harry laughed, pulled on his other unlaced boot, and stood. He pulled Uma to him, his arms around her thin waist. "But I can maim them? Just a little?"

Uma pressed her palms to his bare chest, her fingers splaying against his toned and scarred skin. "Just a little." She winked and pulled out of his embrace. "Another shower before you go?" With a devious grin, she disappeared into the bathroom.

Harry chuckled, toed off his boots he had just put on, and stripped from his pants. Grinning broadly, he followed Uma into the bathroom.

* * *

"Be more careful. I have a headache," Gil mumbled, massaging his temples.

"Stop whining," Harry snapped. "You're fine."

Gil glared at him but didn't say anything. They had been in the car for only half an hour. Of this, a good twenty minutes had been spent by Harry trying to get the hang of driving. So far, Harry's abrupt use of the gas and brake had caused Gil to smack his head four times against the dash already. After this, Gil had figured out the purpose of the seatbelt and strapped himself tightly in.

Now, they were headed in the right direction to go to Charmington as Uma had instructed. However, both boys were finding the road signs confusing and frustrating.

Even if Gil had been able to tell Harry what all the symbols and numbers meant, he wasn't sure he wanted to say anything else to provoke Harry. At the beginning of the drive, Harry had spent a few minutes trying to drive with his hook in one hand. When Gil had suggested he try it without the hook, Harry had growled and rammed the point of the hook down between Gil's legs. Gil still didn't know if Harry had purposely missed or not, but now the hook was imbedded in the seat between Gil's thighs. He would prefer it stayed there until Harry had calmed down.

"Ridiculous winding roads," Harry hissed under his breath a few minutes later. His knuckles were white as he gripped the steering wheel. "This is why I like the sea. No dumb signs or rules or highways to keep you on a path."

"You've only sailed within the barrier," Gil said with a frown. "Hardly a place without a path if you ask me."

"Yeah, well, I didn't, did I?" Harry said. He glanced up into the rearview mirror and cursed. "This thing is maddening."

For once, Gil could agree with Harry. There weren't a lot of mirrors on the Isle, so it was unusual to see one's own reflection staring back at them. Gil guessed the reflection was startling Harry every time. This would not make his temper or skill at driving any better.

Gil glanced at Harry, hesitating before reaching up with one hand, gripping the mirror, and jerking his hand abruptly downward. The mirror snapped off. Gil tossed it into the back seat.

Harry shifted, seeming to relax. He glanced at Gil and then back to the road. Gil knew that was as close to a thank you as he would ever get, so it allowed him to relax as well.

* * *

"What do we do?" Audrey whined, wringing her hands. "It's getting dark."

Doug looked up at her from where he was crouched beside the rear driver's tire of Audrey's sports car. "For starters, you could get the flashlight out of the emergency kit."

"What emergency kit?" Audrey asked.

Doug sighed. Honestly, he should have been expecting that. Typically, everyone seemed to be at Audrey's beck and call, so why would the princess dare think she would ever need an emergency kit to do something for herself.

He pushed himself up from the ground. "Nevermind, I'll turn on the headlights. It'll be better than nothing, I guess." He opened the car door and slid into the driver's seat. With a twist of the keys, the car purred awake. He turned on the headlights. "Do you at least have another pair of shoes in this car? We may have to walk since it doesn't look like you have a spare or the tools to change it anyhow. You better hope this is just something simple I can patch until we get to Charmington."

Audrey nodded and waited until Doug got back out to resume examining the partially-deflated tire. She took the vacated driver's seat and reached behind the passenger's seat, rummaging for a moment. When she pulled her hand back into her lap, she was clutching a small shoe box. Luckily, she always kept her trainers for cheerleading in her car for after-school practices and tourney games. They would be much easier to walk in than her powder blue sparkle wedges she was currently wearing.

As soon as she had changed shoes to less-flattering but more comfortable for walking trainers, she joined Doug at the back of the car. "Found anything?"

"Yeah, a bullet." Doug held it up so she could see it in the last rays of sunlight. "Remember when we thought the car backfired at the edge of the city? Yeah, guessing someone was actually trying to prevent us from going anywhere."

Audrey huffed, putting her hands on her hips. "This is absurd. The villains can't just come in and take everything and boss us around."

Doug frowned at her before going back to examining the puncture in the tire. The bullet had been stuck in the tire, preventing all of the air from escaping at once, but the farther they had driven, the more the bullet had moved and let air escape little by little.

"All I'm saying is it isn't fair," Audrey mumbled. She turned away from him and kicked a rock away.

A moment later, headlights appeared at the crest of the hill they had barely managed to get up before needing to stop the car. Audrey's heart began to pound, and she began waving her hands. "Hey! HEY!"

"Audrey, what are you-" But Doug didn't get to finish his sentence. It died in his throat.

A jet black car had skidded to a halt beside them. And two boys had just stepped out.

* * *

Gil's stomach was a tight knot of guilt. Harry and he had gotten turned around and lost several times on the road. By the time it was dark, Harry had just been a ball of cuss words and threats. And then they had seen the car and the girl waving her arms.

Harry had immediately stopped the car, claiming they needed someone to give them directions and that the boy and girl would do just fine. Gil should have known that meant kidnapping them. Honestly, was there any other way a villain would have done it? Ok, yeah, Harry could have killed Doug instead of just slicing open his cheek with the tip of his sword. But still.

Now, Harry was driving while Doug sat in the passenger's seat quietly and reluctantly giving Harry instructions and telling him what all the road signs meant.

Gil was in the back with the girl, and she hadn't spoken since she had shouted about how they would have to face her parents and how her dad had defeated Maleficent. Then Harry had smacked her hard. His ring had cut into her cheek and was now a swollen purple mass. She had become as quiet and still as stone then and had remained so even after Gil put her in the backseat.

And the strangest thing was how much Gil felt drawn to her. Like she was someone he wanted to protect. She didn't seem the type of get her hands dirty in any sense of the word. Plus, every so often, Gil saw Harry remove his left hand from the steering wheel, slide it back between the door and his seat, and caress what he could reach of the girl's gorgeous legs.

This only made Gil see red as he could just envision Harry having done the same thing to his sisters as he took them captive and led them down to the cells on Uma's orders.

Yet the girl didn't even react. She kept staring out the window, unmoving. As much as this sickened Gil that Harry did this and the girl didn't move or object to stop him, he was silently grateful she was appearing compliant to Harry's advances. Maybe Harry would get bored soon. If she objected, Gil knew that would only make the entire situation more alluring for Harry. Harry had been like that since Gil had known him - a monster. And if there was one single reason Gil would have wished Uma could have been with them right then was that she was the only person alive that could tame him.


	6. Chapter 6

By the next morning, Chad and Mal had already stopped by Charmington, grabbed food and a few hours' rest each, and met up with Aurora, Phillip, and Charming. Cinderella, they had been told, had accompanied Ben and Evie on to Cinderellasberg a few hours ahead of them. Mal wasn't sure if she was glad or not that they had missed Evie and Ben. Yes, she wanted to meet back up with them, but riding with Chad had also proved to be more enjoyable than she had anticipated. When the radio news coming out of Auradon had revealed the deaths of Beast and Belle and several other incidents, Chad had attempted to curb Mal's emotions by putting on music from a playlist. And, surprisingly, he actually listened to not-so-horrible music. Besides from this, Mal figured it was best for her sanity to not endure a long car ride with Ben. It was too soon.

"There it is," Chad said, turning the van onto a tree-lined gravel drive.

Mal leaned forward to look out the windshield. Up ahead was a three-story blue cottage with white trim and a wrap-around porch. A tower protruded from the third level, and somehow, Mal figured that was the room where Chad's mother had slept before Charming had rescued her from her childhood home.

As soon as Chad parked the car, Evie appeared in the doorway of the cottage. She squealed and sprinted to the van, tackling Mal into a tight hug as soon as she had stepped down from the passenger seat.

Mal laughed and squeezed Evie's waist. "Hi."

Evie pulled back. "Oh my gosh, you're alive! I thought..." She swallowed, taking a step back. She shook her head and wiped at her eyes. "I wasn't sure they'd leave you alive on the Isle or that Chad would get to you in time if you were still ok. What happened?"

Mal glanced over her shoulder. Chad had opened the sliding side door and was taking out their bags that Aurora, Phillip, and Charming had supplied them with. She turned back to Evie. "It's a long story. Let's just get inside." But as Evie nodded and turned to lead them inside, Mal suddenly remembered what had been weighing so heavily on her mind before she and Chad had started singing to Aladdin and the Lamps in the van. "Evie. Wait. Does Ben...does Ben know?"

Evie's smile faltered, and her shoulders slumped. "Yeah. We heard the news over the radio in the kitchen this morning when we got up. He would have heard sooner, but he crashed as soon as we got here. Maybe that was a good thing. I doubt he'll have a peaceful sleep ever again really."

Mal nodded and sighed. "How much of it did he hear? We listened to the report on the way here too." Mal silently prayed that Ben had stopped listening as soon as his parents' deaths had been revealed. Maybe he had been so horrified that he had shut the radio off immediately. But no. Mal could tell just from Evie's face that Ben had heard the entire thing. He had heard how their bodies had been discovered in a ditch, mutilated and disgraced in ways that just hearing described over the radio had made Mal want to open the window and puke.

"We should give him time," Chad said, shutting the door to the van and locking it. He readjusted the strap of one of the bags on his shoulder. "I doubt there's anything any of us can say or do right now that will help."

"Your mom made him tea," Evie said.

Chad nodded. "I figured. She always makes tea when people are upset."

Chad ended up leading the way inside with Evie and Mal walking close together behind him. He dropped the bags just inside the door before moving into the kitchen. "Hey, Mom."

A tall slender woman in jeans and a knitted baby blue sweater stood at the stove, her back to the door as she hummed and stirred a large pot on the stove. She looked up at Chad's words and smiled. They met in the middle of the kitchen in a tight hug. "I was so worried. Your father called and said you and Mal were on your way, but still."

Mal motioned to Evie that they should leave the kitchen, and the two girls exited to the living room just outside the kitchen. "Do you think there's anything we can do for Ben? Just...to let him know we're here for him?"

Evie shook her head. "I don't know." She sat in a velvet armchair and pulled one foot up underneath her. "I'm not sure you should see him though."

Mal frowned and hesitated before sitting across from her. "He's still taking it pretty hard, isn't he?"

"Aren't you?"

Mal looked away. "I think I've just had a lot more on my mind than him recently. I'm still sad, but...it doesn't hurt like it did. I think it will be more awkward than sad to see him."

Evie nodded. "He's recovering. I just don't know that it's a good idea for any of us to see him right now. He's already broken two mirrors and a vase. I think he blames himself."

"Why? If it's anyone's fault, it's mine," Mal said instantly.

"Mal," Evie said, "you can't control Uma's actions. You could only do what you thought was best for you and for Ben. You couldn't possibly have known things would play out like this."

Mal sighed and dropped her head into her hands. "I know. I know. It just feels like my fault. It feels like Uma did all of this in response to me. To get back at me for everything I've ever done to her."

"That's not what it is, Mal, and you know it. Any one of us on that Isle who had the chance she did would have jumped to get that wand. I mean, Mal, we  _did_ do that. We were ready to hand the exact same power to our parents. And they would be doing everything Uma's doing now. It's not yourself you have to blame. It's Uma's choice to do all of this, ok?"

Mal peered through her fingers at Evie and sighed heavily. She knew she was right. Evie had a habit of being right and talking sense into Mal when she needed it most. She did that with a lot of people actually. "Ok." She lowered her hands from her face. "Ok. Well, what do we do right now if we're waiting on Ben to calm down a bit? I think Chad mentioned we're here for some type of magical arsenal?"

Evie nodded and instantly cringed as a large crash came from upstairs. She sighed. "I guess he's moved on to breaking furniture." She shook her head in exasperation. "Yeah, Cinderella said there's a storage place not too far from here where there's a stock of magical weapons Fairy Godmother hid when Beast ordered the ban and destruction of magical items. It's supposed to be a cellar out in the middle of the woods behind here or something."

"Ok. When can we go there?" Mal asked.

"I don't know. We need to go as a group, see what we have to work with, and make a plan."

"Well, is it just us?" Mal asked. "Have you heard from Jay or Carlos? What about Doug?"

Evie looked down at her dark blue toenails, which she had freshly painted just before the invasion. "I haven't heard from any of them."

"I'm sure they're ok," Mal said, though she knew Evie could tell her confidence in her own words was very low. "We'll find them. Jay and Carlos are tough. And I'm sure Doug's smart enough to keep himself out of the way of most of the villains. He's resourceful, and-"

"I don't want to talk about Doug," Evie said sharply. She squeezed her eyes shut and exhaled slowly. "I'm sorry. Mal, I didn't mean to snap. It's just..."

"You two aren't together any more, are you?" Mal asked softly.

Evie opened her eyes and looked at Mal through the tears welling up there. "Yeah. I don't really want to talk about it right now, but it was my choice."

Mal got up and moved to sit on the arm of Evie's chair. She put an arm around her shoulders. "Do you feel that it was the right choice?"

Evie nodded, leaning against Mal's side. "Yeah. Just a hard one. Like the one you made."

"Hey, Mom says breakfast is nearly ready," Chad said, looking around the corner from the kitchen doorway. "Can one of you tell Ben? I doubt he'll eat, but we can try."

Evie nodded again and stood. "I'll tell him." She hugged Mal. "Thanks, Mal. I'm glad I at least know you're safe."

When Evie reached the door at the top of the second-floor landing, it was to hear sobbing from within. She knocked. "Ben?"

A very choked "Go away" was uttered from the other side of the door. Evie ignored this and tried the door handle. The door only opened a few inches before it hit something solid and heavy on the other side.

"Ben, come on, let me in," Evie said. "Can you move whatever's blocking the door?"

"No."

Evie sighed and pressed her weight against the door, pushing as hard as she could until the door gave a few more inches and she was able to squeeze her way through the small space between the door and its frame. The room beyond had been torn to shreds. The dresser, presumably the loud crash she and Mal had heard from downstairs, was lying on its face, and its mirror had been shattered from the impact with the floor.

Evie stepped carefully around the shards of glass, which was increasingly difficult as she realized just how much damage Ben had done. It seemed like every single piece of glass or ceramic decoration that had been in the room had been hurled against the wall and shattered into shards, slivers, and dust particles. The carpet sparkled like stars from how many glass slivers were now sprinkled across the carpet.

And it wasn't just fragile items like these that had been destroyed in Ben's fit. Pillow fluff and shreds of the sheets and curtains lay strewn across the floor like a mess from a wild party with streamers. The only thing in the room that seemed mostly undamaged was the crystal chandelier above the bed, and it was probably only safe because Ben hadn't been able to reach it.

The morning sunlight streamed in through the naked windows, covering the bed in warm light. It was here that Ben lay curled up around the least damaged pillow in the room, sobbing into a tuft of fluff that was poking out of a large rip down its back.

"Ben," Evie said softly. She lowered herself onto the edge of the bed, trying not to create too much of a ripple in the mattress so as to not disturb him. "Ben, Cinderella says breakfast is ready."

"I'm not hungry," Ben grumbled, his face still buried in the pillow.

"I know. We just thought you might try to-"

"Try to what?" Ben snapped. "Try to eat when my parents are dead? When my citizens are being murdered? When everything that could possibly go wrong has done just that?"

Evie was quiet for a moment before she finally said, "So, I guess you want to give up. You'll let Uma take over?"

"She's already won."

"She hasn't won until there's no fight left in us."

Ben turned his head to look at her. "For someone who grew up on the Isle, you have a very positive outlook on all of this."

"No, it's called determination. That's what we had to have to survive on the Isle. You've never had to fight to survive. We have. And the only thing that ends a fight is when one side decides to quit."

"Or when we all die," Ben said in a dark tone. He turned his face back into the pillow.

Evie huffed. She hated seeing Ben like this and hated being this blunt with him given the recent news of his parents' deaths even more. But, she knew it was necessary. Ben wouldn't do anything with people babying him. It wasn't that she wasn't sympathetic or didn't want him to take time to grieve, but the quicker he realized they needed his head in this war game, the sooner he was liable to turn grief into a thirst for justice. And that was what they needed right then. They needed a leader.

"You're going to eat, Ben." Evie pulled the pillow away from his face. "Please, will you eat if I bring it to you?"

"No." Ben pulled the torn comforter up over himself to compensate for Evie's theft of his pillow.

"Fine," Evie said. "Then I won't eat. I won't eat until you do."

"What? That's ridiculous," Ben said. He glared at her over the top of the comforter from where he had drawn it up to his nose.

Evie shrugged. "I'm sorry, but you're going to eat if you want me to eat."

Ben rolled his eyes and turned onto his stomach, once again burying his face in the nearest plush object, which this time was the mattress. "Go away, Evie. Go eat and make a plan with Mal and Chad. I heard them downstairs. I'm sure they'll be a lot more help than I will."

Evie pulled her feet up onto the bed. She took off her sandals and set them on the floor before moving to the center of the large bed to where Ben was. "Listen, Ben. We're all here for you. We understand that you're-"

"You can't possibly understand what this feels like!" Ben snapped, and even though his voice was muffled by the mattress, Evie heard him and the anger in his voice clearly.

"No," Evie said, "I know. I just was going to say that we understand that you're going to need time to grieve. It's just that maybe...well, maybe fighting Uma is more important right now. You can't do anything for your parents, and I'm so sorry about that. But, there are other people - your people - that are out there right now being tortured and raped and all types of other things. And you can do something for them. You can fight back. I know it's not nice to hear. I know it must seem like I don't care about your parents when I say that. But that's not true. I just know that you will later regret doing nothing right now with every new story that comes on the radio of something bad that has happened. Please. We need your help, Ben. Mal, Chad, and I...we can't do this alone. We need everyone we can get. We have to fight back. Auradon is my home now, and I won't let it end like this. I would have thought that you wouldn't either."

Evie watched him for several silent moments after she had finished speaking. Eventually, the comforter moved as Ben rolled back over onto his side and pinned her with a pained, hollow look in his eyes.

"My mom always said hugs and being held were some of the best remedies for sadness," he said quietly. "I know it won't fix anything, but I..." He trailed off and looked away. He swallowed and shook his head. "Nevermind. I'll be down in a bit for food, I guess."

Evie gave him a soft, sad smile and lay down on her side next to him so that they were face to face. "It's ok to ask for what you need, Ben."

Ben swallowed, and his eyes instantly filled with fresh tears. "I need to not feel like I'm falling apart. I feel like I need to be physically held together. Like I need something good to happen. Anything, like adrenaline or even laughing at some horrible joke. I need something that doesn't make me want to curl into a ball and cry until I'm too dehydrated to move."

"So, a hug? Maybe hold you?"

Ben nodded. "It would be a start."

Evie shifted closer to him and drew him to her chest, one of her arms around his waist and the other under his head. She maneuvered them until she was lying on her back with him lying half off her and half on top of her. His head rested on her shoulder, and every time he exhaled, she felt his breath fan across her throat. Her heart was pounding, its rhythm irregular as it sunk in just how close and intimate this position was. Maybe a hug would have sufficed. But, no, she reminded herself, Ben had just lost his parents and this was what he needed. It was simply the comfort of physical touch and companionship.

"I need to feel something good," Ben whispered after a whole minute, and his hand that was on her stomach slid to rest on her hip.

Evie swallowed. "Like...like what?" She had a strong feeling she knew what he meant. Physical comfort. That's what he meant. He wanted something more than just a hug or to be held. He wanted what Evie herself had been craving again ever since she had broken up with Doug. She missed those sweet touches and soft gentle kisses on the couch in her dorm room. She missed being touched as if she was cherished, like she meant something more to someone else than just a friend. And, she would have been lying if she said she wasn't missing it that exact moment too. Now, stronger than ever, was her desire for that physical closeness with someone again. Holding Ben and feeling his breath and heartbeat so close to hers was intoxicating.

Ben shifted slightly so that she could just see his eyes. "Like a kiss," he said, "like anything you're willing to give me so that I won't feel this pain, even if only for one single minute. Please. Please, Evie, I know that this is-"

Evie had pressed a finger to his lips to silence him. "It's ok." She lowered her hand. "You don't need to explain."

She pulled him closer. The kiss began as a hesitant brush of their lips, but as soon as the first ripple of nerves and adrenaline had passed through them both, it became desperate and passionate. Ben gave a soft hum and sunk lower into her body. As he relaxed, so did she, and her fingers wove their way into his hair to keep him close.

"Evie?" came Mal's voice up the stairs.

Evie and Ben instantly separated, and Evie was on her feet soon after. "We're coming," she called back. She looked back at Ben where he was sitting on the bed, still wrapped in the comforter but now with pink cheeks. "You will come eat, won't you?"

"Only so you don't starve," Ben said. But he gave a weak smile, which Evie figured was the best they could hope for out of him for a while.

* * *

"Just how long do you plan on waiting?" Gil asked. He had his arms crossed over his chest as he watched Harry peer through the trees and bushes toward the back of the cottage.

"Until nightfall," Harry answered, finally turning around to face him. "We need the cover of darkness, and it's best to wait until they're asleep."

Gil frowned, but he saw no point in arguing. He had learned by now that sometimes it was best not to question Harry's methods. After all, if Harry was willing to wait almost twelve hours before attacking the group inside, that would give Mal and her friends more time to regroup and make a plan. No, Gil didn't want to outright choose a side, especially if that side was with Uma's enemies. But, he couldn't help thinking that his best chance of rescuing all his siblings safely probably resided in Mal and her friends.

"Well, what about them?" Gil asked, jerking his head toward Doug and Audrey.

Harry shrugged. "We'll find a use for them. They're fine where they are right now."

Where they were was sitting gagged and bound to a tree nearby. Harry and Gil had tied them there after walking a distance into the woods with them to get closer to Cinderella's cottage. They had abandoned the car on the other side of the trees, having not wanted any attention drawn to them. Now, they were lurking just beyond the tree line, waiting.

Harry crouched in front of Audrey and Doug. "Remember," he said, "any noise or funny business, and this," he gestured to his hook, "goes straight through your voice box. Got it?"

Both Audrey and Doug nodded.

"Good!" Harry stood and returned to Gil. "So. Now, we wait."


	7. Chapter 7

Jane was shaking as she paced the room she had been given. For what felt like the thousandth time, she unwound her plait, let her wavy hair fall loose, and then began braiding it again. There was no point to the action except to keep her hands busy, which she desperately needed to do.

The previous day was mostly a blur. She, Lonnie, Jay, and Carlos had reached Mulan and Shang's home near the northern border and enjoyed a tasty traditional Chinese lunch with a tense atmosphere. This was mainly due to Shang's insistence that the radio be on at all times so he could hear updates coming in from all over Auradon. While it may have calmed his nerves to be in the loop, it had made Jane feel sick. From the looks on her friends' faces, it had had the same effect on them. Mulan had seemed able to tune it out or at least hide her emotions while she comforted them by baking her famous chocolate chip cookies Lonnie had always talked about at school. A bit later, they had gone to bed in sober, hushed whispers.

This morning, though, Jane had been due to set out for the Auradon-Camelot border with Jay and Carlos as Lonnie had decided to stay home to assist her parents. After all, the border wasn't far, and no villains should have made it that far north yet to intercept them, so the three of them would have been able to handle themselves fine without Lonnie. Unfortunately, Jay and Carlos were only allowed as far as the gate of the border where they would cross over to Camelot. The guards there said that, given the circumstances in Auradon, they were under orders not to allow anyone from the Isle past the border, which meant they refused Jay and Carlos entry as well. And Jane had only been allowed in once she had stated her reason for requesting a palace visit and had proven her identity as Fairy Godmother's daughter.

So, after a tearful goodbye to Carlos and Jay, Jane had continued into Camelot alone. No friends. No clue where she was going. And no clue if her father even knew she existed.

One of the guards had accompanied her to the palace, and she had been graciously met by Guinevere. The queen had given her lunch and then had her escorted to a guest chamber to wait for Merlin and Arthur to return from an errand in a neighboring town.

Now, with each passing minute, Jane grew more nervous. It had been simple to get here. But, she had not wanted to wait to meet her father. The waiting was worse than anything. She had wanted to just rip off the bandaid and do it. She wasn't even sure Merlin knew she existed. If he did, why hadn't he made an effort to meet her before now? Even as King Arthur's head wizard, Merlin couldn't have been that busy to not try to visit his daughter on holidays or her birthday. Well, maybe he had other kids here in Camelot. Maybe he just didn't care about some daughter miles away in another kingdom.

"Stop," Jane whispered to herself, massaging her temples as she let out her braid once again. She exhaled and stopped pacing long enough to look out the window. She couldn't decide if it was a good or bad thing that her room overlooked the road into town. On the one hand, she would be able to prepare herself when she saw Merlin and Arthur coming up the drive. But on the other hand, that preparation would only allow her to become even more nervous.

And if she wasn't thinking about her father, she was going over all the strategies of what to say to Arthur to convince him to come to Auradon's aid. Shang and Mulan had given her suggestions. They didn't think it would be hard to gain Arthur's help since Camelot and Auradon had always been on good terms, but Jane was petrified that she would somehow screw up their chances of getting his help.

A knock at the door made Jane's heart clench, and she turned just as the door opened.

A boy just a few years older than she was stood at the door. His dark hair fell over his shoulders, blending in with his leather jacket so that Jane wasn't really sure where his hair stopped and the jacket began. "Hey. Jane, right?"

"Um, yes," Jane said. She tucked her hand behind her ear. She wished she had just left it alone in the braid now. "Can I help you?"

The boy stepped into the room, and as he did so, a light 'thud' alerted Jane to the sword that hung at his side as the weapon knocked into the doorframe. "Yeah, the queen sent me to get you. She said Arthur called, and he and Merlin are on their way back."

Jane's insides coiled around themselves. By now, she was convinced her internal organs would kill her from nerves before any of the villains in Auradon ever got the chance. "Ok." The word came out a bit choked, and she was sure that the eyebrow the boy raised was in response to how nervous she probably looked.

"I'm Gavin," the boy said. "Sir Gwaine's son. And don't be nervous. Arthur and Merlin are awesome guys."

Jane managed a nod. "Ok." She was grateful for his encouragement, but he didn't know the full extent of the situation. No one in Camelot did. She had conveniently left out the part about Merlin being her father when she had met the queen.

Jane followed Gavin out of her room and back down to the parlor where she had met Queen Guinevere just a little more than an hour ago. The queen sat on one of the sofas, drinking tea while she looked through the pages of a fashion magazine.

When Jane and Gavin entered, Guinevere looked up and smiled. "Hi, Jane. Have a seat. My husband and Merlin will be in shortly."

As Jane took a seat on the sofa, Gavin left the room. Jane felt a new set of nerves charge up her spine. She had been hoping Gavin would stick around. While she didn't know him at all, it was still comforting to have someone close to her own age around. Being in a room with three prestigious adults was not good for her nerves. What if they didn't take her seriously?

Jane didn't have much time for her nerves to take over, however, because a few minutes later, she could hear very loud male voices coming down the hall.

"I mean, honestly, how could he have mistaken a griffin egg for a chicken's?" came a hearty voice, followed by a chuckle. "You'd think when it's four times the size of a normal hen's egg, you'd get suspicious."

"Well, at least we got there when we did," came a second voice. "Griffin slaying always makes for a good workout, especially when there's no casualties."

By the time Jane had registered that the two men were making light of a griffin attack on a neighboring town, the voices were at the doorway of the parlor. The two men entered. The first was a tall, muscular blond who looked like he might have just retired from a healthy career of modeling men's clothing to do something more relaxing like workout by smiling at women and making them swoon. As soon as he saw Guinevere, he swept forward and kissed her sweetly on the cheek.

As Jane realized that this was quite obviously King Arthur, her gaze (and all of her nerves) quickly shifted focus to the second man. This man was nothing like the first, and if Jane had seen him anywhere outside of a palace parlor that boasted fine china and imported silks, she would have assumed he was some type of blacksmith or pub owner. His hair was brown and frizzy, a wild mass that grew down past his shoulders. He had a beard to match. Where his black leather vest cut off, tattoos took over, the dark inked designs running over every inch of skin from shoulder to knuckles.

Jane was sure that if her teeth weren't tightly clamped together from nerves at the moment that her jaw would have been hanging open. There was absolutely no way that was the wizard Merlin. It just couldn't be. Her mother was so put-together and clean, and well, he seemed to be just the opposite. The thought of the two of them ever being compatible was both laughable and scarring for Jane.

"How was the errand, boys?" Guinevere asked, closing her magazine and placing it on a side table.

"Perfectly fun," Arthur answered. He glanced to Jane. "You must be the Jane I got the call about earlier?"

"Yes," the queen answered before Jane could even think of coherent words to respond. "She has news about the issue in Auradon. She's Fairy Godmother's daughter."

"You're Jo's daughter?" came Merlin's rumbling voice.

Jane looked at him and nodded, silent as she desperately wished Guinevere hadn't revealed that information so early or at all. If he didn't know she was his daughter, he would be able to quickly put the pieces together.

Merlin's eyebrows knitted together as he surveyed her. "Hmph," he grunted as he crossed his arms. "Should have known she would raise you to be all prim and proper. Never listened to my advice."

"I, you know?" Jane stammered, her voice slightly squeakier than she ever dreamed it could be. She glanced toward the king and queen, both of whom were watching her and Merlin now. "Um, maybe just answer that later." She swallowed and look away.

"Too true. We've heard about the business of the Isle barrier being destroyed. Tell us more about the situation," Merlin said. "After all, Arthur can't resist a good battle or a tale about one, for that matter."

Arthur opened his mouth as if he were about to argue, but Merlin waved him down. "Don't even try it, boy-o, you know you've been looking for a fight since you've been born as long as you can play the hero."

Guinevere stifled a laugh against her hand and looked away from her husband.

Merlin nodded to a chair behind Jane. "Sit, and tell us what we'll be dealing with."

* * *

It was approaching midnight by the time most of the residents at Cinderella's cottage had retired for bed. But Mal was still very much awake, and she guessed that this was due to a nap she had taken just after lunch earlier in the day.

"Mom just went to bed," Chad said quietly as he entered the living room from the kitchen. He carried two steaming mugs, one of which he handed to her a few seconds later. He sat across from her on the sofa where she had claimed one corner and curled her feet up underneath her.

She cradled the warm mug of tea in her hands and gave him a soft smile. "Thanks for the tea. And, well, for everything else too."

"Don't mention it," Chad said. He took a sip of his tea, but pulled it away from his lips quickly and set the mug on the table. "Hot," he murmured and sat back against the cushions.

"But, really, you didn't have to come rescue me," Mal said, watching him. She had spent the last day and a half thinking it over, wondering if there had been some other secret motive behind Chad's valiant efforts to rescue her from the Isle. But every time, she came up short. She knew it had likely just been a convenient favor to Ben so that Ben wouldn't worry about her safety, which was what Chad had told her in the van on their way to the cottage. But, for some reason she couldn't name, this reason disappointed her. She almost wished he would admit he had gone to get her for another reason.

"I kind of did," Chad said, though his response seemed tense and forced. "Like I mentioned earlier, Ben would have just barged in with no regard to his own safety to get to you. Someone had to stop him from doing something reckless, and Evie would have probably just gone with him to help since you're her best friend."

A frown fell into place on Mal's face. "You mean Evie was with him when the barrier fell? You told me it was the middle of the night and the announcement woke you up."

"It did," Chad said. "Evie was already there. They've been spending a lot of time together, I've noticed."

Something twisted in Mal's belly, and she dropped her gaze to her tea. Ok, that didn't necessarily mean anything romantic was happening between Ben and Evie. They had been good friends when Mal had left too, so maybe it was just two friends helping each other through their own breakups. But no, that just led to more uncomfortable thoughts that led to Ben and Evie in dimly lit rooms together, talking by the moonlight and then thoughts of talking that led to more than talking.

She pushed away the thought, wishing it didn't bother her so much. It wasn't like she and Ben were still an item. She had chosen to let him go, and she still believed it had been the right choice. He had the right to date anyone he liked now, even if that person did end up being her best friend. But, still, perhaps it was that the wound was still too fresh.

Chad put down his tea again, this time having managed a full sip without apparently burning himself. He pushed himself up from the sofa. "Want any sugar or milk?"

Mal shook her head and watched him disappear into the kitchen in silence. As he returned, she took a sip of her tea. It warmed her all the way down to her stomach, and everything felt suddenly more peaceful. "What type of tea is this?"

"Chamomile mixed with honey and lavender," Chad said as he added a sugar cube to his mug and stirred it. "My mom always made it for me when I couldn't sleep. I figured we'd need it. It always calms me to drink it the night before a big exam or tourney game."

Mal nodded. "That's useful. Thanks." After just a few sips, she already felt more relaxed and, thus, sleepy. It was as if the warmth of the tea had seeped into her bones and started to shut them down. Her limbs felt leaden, and by the time she had drained her cup, all she wanted was to lie down.

Chad stood after finishing his own mug and held out his hand for her cup. She handed it over and stood while also stifling a large yawn. "Where did your mom say was the entrance to the tower?"

Cinderella had informed them that there were just enough beds for the five of them, and since Mal was used to sleeping in the loft on the Isle, she had volunteered to take the room at the top of the cottage's tower. This was the room Cinderella had apparently spent most of her youth in before the whole Fairy Godmother and royal ball ordeal.

"Oh, hang on, I'll show it to you," called Chad from the kitchen. There was the sound of running water as he rinsed the mugs out, and the clink as he set them in the sink.

A second later, Chad reappeared from the kitchen and motioned for Mal to follow him up the stairs. They walked in silence up two flights of stairs until Chad stopped at a door at the end of the hallway. He opened it. Beyond was a winding spiral staircase leading up into darkness. He flipped a switch just inside the door, and a series of naked bulbs spaced out at intervals up the walls lit up the small space. At least now Mal would be able to see where she was going.

"Thanks," she mumbled.

"I can walk you up if you like," Chad said, nodding to the stairs. "Mom refuses to go up there. Too many bad memories. So, she's not sure the bed is made."

"Oh. Right." Mal crossed her arms over her abdomen. "I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I'm used to fending for myself."

"Well, I can check and see if we have more blankets. It's probably drafty up there."

Now that she was drowsy, Mal's patience wasn't what it had been earlier. Not that she was ever patient normally. And given the circumstances of the whole country being turned on its head by the villains, it was no shock to Mal that she suddenly snapped at Chad. "Look, Chad, I don't need your charity. Ben isn't asking you to do him a favor again. I can handle everything myself without people thinking I'm some damsel in distress that needs saving all the time or that has to be saved to keep Ben from running around getting himself killed. I get it. I'm a liability to Ben's emotions and that's the only reason you rescued me from the Isle. But I don't need any more rescuing, and certainly not from a drafty tower. I'm used to it. Just go to bed."

She strode into the passage for the stairwell that would lead up to the tower room and was about to ascend the first few steps when Chad caught her hand.

"Whoa, Mal," he said, stepping fully into the space with her. "This isn't charity. I'm just trying to be nice."

Mal wrenched her hand out of his grip. "Is that what you call rescuing me? You came to Isle so that Ben wouldn't have to. My rescue wasn't because you give a damn about me. You did it to protect him."

Chad reached behind him to shut the door to the passageway, effectively sealing them in at the foot of the spiral staircase. Mal knew this was because she had raised her voice and any more, she would probably wake the cottage's other three inhabitants.

"Yes, Mal, I did it partly to protect Ben. When a country is in crisis, we can't just have the king running into the line of fire like an emotional wrecking ball to get himself killed. But," he turned her back to him when she tried to head for the staircase, "I also did it for another reason." This time, his teeth were gritted together as he spoke, and Mal wondered if he was about to cry or if he was just that angry. "If you think I don't give a damn about you, you're the farthest you can be from the truth."

Mal rolled her eyes, frowning at him in the dim light. "Oh really?" She knew she was being rude by her skepticism and sarcasm, but she couldn't find it in herself to care. All her life, she had been her mother's pawn, and now she felt that exact same way again. "And what is that?"

"I didn't want to give Ben a chance to convince you that you made the wrong decision in breaking up with him," Chad said. He swallowed, and the tension eased from his face a little as if he had just revealed a dark secret and the confession was freeing.

Mal narrowed her eyes. "I agree that it would have been unwise for him to have had that chance when I was so vulnerable. But, why would you possibly agree? You're his best friend."

"Best friends can still be jealous," Chad said.

Mal's mouth was suddenly dry as she assumed what he meant. No, he couldn't possibly mean that. She shook her head. Part of her didn't want to have it confirmed, but the other part controlled her mouth, and she asked before she could stop herself, "Jealous of what exactly?"

"Ben and you," Chad said slowly. He looked away as if he was ashamed to meet her eye as he confessed even further. "I was jealous that you met him first, rather than me. Girls have a habit of falling for the heir of a kingdom, not to mention his good looks. I could tell from the way you looked at him from the very start. There was no use in me interfering when it would end in a rejection from you and a rift in my friendship with him." He shrugged a shoulder. "So, yeah, maybe me rescuing you was less about protecting Ben and more about taking my chance to play the hero. That's what princes are taught around here: save the girl, get the girl. And I know that's stupid and selfish of me, but you will not stand there and accuse me of rescuing you only as a favor. You matter to a lot of people, and any one of them could have gone after you, and just because you didn't know my true reason for volunteering does not mean you get to criticize me, Mal."

Mal opened her mouth to say something and then abruptly closed it again. Really, how could she respond to that? She had had no idea of Chad's feelings whatsoever. "You," she managed finally in a soft tone, "why did you never say anything? I mean, before Ben and I got together. He was still dating Audrey when we met."

Chad sighed and scrubbed a hand over his face. "Maybe because I was scared and because, shockingly, you can come off as a bit intimidating some times."

Despite her best efforts, a small smile flitted onto Mal's face at this. But she swallowed, and immediately pushed it back. "Fair enough. I...I'm sorry for snapping and accusing you of not caring."

"It's not like I gave you a reason to think otherwise," Chad said and gave a shrug. "And we're all a little stressed. We should probably just get to bed. And," he took a deep breath, "forget we had this conversation."

"Yeah," Mal said quietly even though she knew that was a lie. She would not be forgetting this conversation any time soon. "Goodnight, Chad."

He nodded, opened the door that led back to the hallway, and was gone. Mal was left in the dim light then, with a thousand new thoughts to digest and what seemed as just as many stairs to climb.


	8. Chapter 8

Jane's room in the Camelot palace was more quiet and peaceful than it had been that morning before she met her father. Now, she felt at ease and had a greater sense of hope than she could remember having felt in a long time.

Arthur had heartily agreed to help the citizens of Auradon take back their kingdom from the villains. Jane had been hoping for and expecting his answer to be yes, but she had not expected him to offer his help so freely. She had expected some deal or contract to be necessary, since if the army's advance was successful, Auradon would be indebted to Camelot. However, as Merlin explained later at lunch with her, Arthur often agreed to things before he thought them through. This, according to Merlin, meant Arthur was basically bored and looked at helping Auradon as a fun venture and should have asked for something in return but probably forgot it in his excitement.

But Arthur's eagerness to help was not what occupied her thoughts currently. After talking with Arthur and Guinevere in the parlor with Merlin, Jane had been escorted to lunch with Merlin. He had taken her to an outdoor cafe in the heart of the city. And they had talked. And it had been wonderful. By the time they had gotten their salads, the knots in her stomach had uncoiled and her muscles had relaxed. He wasn't so bad, and it became more possible for her to imagine her mother falling for him. His laugh was too loud, but he had a voice that you couldn't help but listen to with rapt attention. His eyes were lit with the excitement of adventure and magic. And he had revealed that he had wanted to contact her multiple times in the past, but with the way he and her mother had left things just after her birth, Fairy Godmother had repeatedly told him no with the promise that she would tell Jane about the identity of her father when she turned eighteen. Initially, this had made Jane furious that her mother had purposely kept him away from her. But, with the memory of her last moments with her mother and the realization that Fairy Godmother could very well be dead, Jane couldn't stay angry toward the kind woman for long.

And magic. They had discussed what Fairy Godmother had said about Jane being born for Merlin's type of magic. Much to Jane's relief and surprise, he immediately offered to train her with magic. When she objected that they didn't have time, he had just laughed and assured her that she would not need books or classrooms to learn his type of magic. No, they could learn on the road. For, in fact, Arthur was only planning on taking a few days to ready his army and map out an attack with his head knights. They would head to Mulan and Shang's mansion, combine the troops, and then march on Auradon City all within the next week.

Mulan and Shang had, of course, suggested this combination of troops. And Jane had conveyed the confirmation of the plan to Carlos as soon as possible after lunch with Merlin. But she hadn't heard back from him since the early afternoon, when he had promised to call her that night. Now, it was late, and she was still waiting up for his call.

Jane had enough time to take a shower and get completely ready for bed before her phone rang. She dashed over to where she had plugged it into the wall to charge.

"Hello? Carlos?"

"Hey," came Carlos's sober voice.

"What happened? What's wrong?" Jane asked, dropping onto the edge of her bed as she tugged the charger out of the wall absently so she could sit down.

"A lot. Have you been watching the news at all?"

"No."

"Don't. It's bad. Some very brave reporters have dipped in and out of the city to get news. There's still a barrier preventing communication around the palace and school grounds. Today, one of the reporters was killed while being filmed. The cameraman got away, so he was able to report the story. But, it was horrible, and there's...there's more."

Jane's mouth was dry, and it didn't help that her heart had suddenly jumped into her throat. "What?" she asked hoarsely.

"All of Doug's family. All of his uncles and cousins. They were all found dead in their home this morning."

"But..." Jane closed her eyes, trying to keep the tears of fear from falling as she asked the next question, "Is Doug dead?"

"I don't know. I've been trying to reach him all day. He could very well still be inside the no-communication barrier or just not have his phone on him. I've tried contacting a lot of the others too and haven't gotten an answer. Jay's been growing restless and has been sparring with Shang to take out his nerves. Granted, Lonnie's been doing that too. She beheaded a mannequin today, and..." Carlos cleared his throat. "I'm getting off topic. Sorry. A lot has just been happening, and we all feel pretty useless just sitting here waiting."

"I'm sorry," Jane said. "But, you got my texts about Arthur and his plan today, right?"

"Yes. Shang and Mulan just said to keep us all updated, especially when you guys are on your way. But, listen, Jane, I might not be here when you get back."

"What? Why?" Jane stood and began to pace, feeling the need to move to work out her anxiety that was mounting.

"Because I heard it was Evil Queen who killed all of Doug's family, and she's been trying to locate Snow White and her husband. I've been hacking my way into some video feeds where there's existing security cameras in Auradon, and from what I can tell, the villains have begun spreading out. And I think all the old villains with unfulfilled agendas are seeking out revenge on the heroes that thwarted them. I've seen both my parents headed toward where Roger and Anita live with all their dogs. And, well, Jane...I have to go. I have to warn them. They'll kill all of those dogs. I know it. There have been reports of shootings and bombings. And, I just can't sit here while people and animals are murdered, especially not for a few fur coats!"

Jane swallowed, listening as Carlos's voice escalated and then cracked. He sniffled, and she said quietly, "I understand. Can you wait until I get there so someone can go with you?"

"No. I'm leaving tonight. I'm sorry. And, look, I know this is shitty to say over the phone. It wasn't how I wanted it to go the first time I said this, but...I love you, Jane."

"Carlos-"

"I'm not saying it as a goodbye or a precaution. I just...wanted you to know."

Tears had started to roll down Jane's cheeks, and she inhaled shakily. "I love you too. Please, be careful, Carlos."

"I will. Hopefully, I'll beat them there, and Shang has taught me a couple things about weaponry. Granted, I'd prefer not to have to use the gun he gave me, but." He paused as if he could simply tell he was making it much much worse for Jane to digest the information the more he talked. "I'll be careful. Don't worry. I'll bring home a puppy for you."

Jane managed a choked laugh. "Ok, sure."

"I will keep you updated as much as I can, Jane. Get some sleep."

"Goodnight, Carlos."

"Night, Jane."

* * *

Despite Harry's greatest efforts to tread lightly, it seemed that he was finding every creaky stair and floorboard there was in the cottage as he made his way through the house. He had made Gil wait outside to guard Doug and Audrey while he "took care of things." His plan was to find Mal and disable her first. Uma had made it clear she wanted both Mal and Ben alive, so his plan was to knock her out. As far as he could figure, she was the biggest threat in the cottage since she was the only one who would wield magic. So, upon entering the cottage shortly after midnight, he had begun creeping from room to room to look for her. Presently, he had just closed the door to where he found Chad sleeping. He could have easily killed him, Evie, and Cinderella already, but he worried that they would wake and make noise in the process, so he was still focused on Mal.

Opening a door at the end of a hallway, Harry found himself staring at a pitch dark alcove. As his eyes adjusted, he saw the start of a spiral staircase leading upward. He had seen from outside that the cottage had a tower, and he assumed this would lead him to it. And, knowing Mal and her weird obsession with sleeping in a place where she had the best vantage point, he guessed he would find her at the top.

Perfect. There would be no escape for her, and his job would be much easier.

He closed the door behind him, sealing himself in the darkness, and started up the stairs.

* * *

Gil paced behind the bushes at the edge of the tree line. His gaze had barely wavered from the cottage since Harry had gone inside. Apparently, Auradon citizens were in a habit of not locking their doors because Gil had watched Harry simply open the front door and walk inside. It was things like that that showed how comfortable and naive Auradon could be when it came to security. No wonder the villains had managed to bring down the barrier and take over with no resistance.

Now, Gil was berating himself mentally for allowing Harry to go in alone. He should have argued harder against his lame post as guard for Audrey and Doug, who were both still secured to the base of the tree. Not that Gil minded if they escaped. He was forever warring with himself over whether to help Harry or help Mal and her friends. He didn't really agree with Uma's plans for Auradon and its citizens, but there was still the problem of his siblings being held captive by her. He was stuck between two imovable forces that seemed to be moving closer all the time, threatening to suffocate him if he didn't make some type of decision soon.

"He's going to kill them, isn't he?" whispered Audrey.

Gil turned around to see that she was talking to Doug. He answered her instead, "Yes, except Ben and Mal."

"And you agree with that?" Doug asked. He pulled against his bonds as he struggled to sit up straighter. "This is low even for villains. They're all asleep, and he's going to murder them in their beds? You're such cowards."

Gil pressed his teeth together and exhaled slowly through his nose. Maybe he should go inside and reason with Harry. Maybe he could convince him to bring them all alive. This wouldn't solve much since Uma was planning on killing them presumably, but it would stall for time so they could maybe escape.

Gil sighed and turned back to the cottage. He didn't want to interfere and put his siblings in danger, which would surely be the case if Harry was aware of Gil sabotaging him and then told Uma. But, if he could sabotage in a way that gave Mal and her friends an advantage while Harry was unaware of him helping them, then maybe he could still play both sides and clear his guilty mind.

"Stay here," he grumbled to Doug and Audrey.

"Ok, yeah, like we have a choice!" Doug huffed at Gil's retreating back.

* * *

Harry was at the top of the spiral staircase, his hand on the doorknob to the tower room beyond, when there came the unmistakable crash of shattering glass. From the nature of it, even far off, it sounded as if every dish, pot, and pan in the kitchen had been thrown against the floor at once. And if he could hear it up here...

Rushed footsteps on the other side of the door brought Harry back to the task at hand. In the split second when the footsteps had just stepped up to the door and the occupant of the room was about to open the door to the stairwell, Harry threw the door open with all the strength he had. A girl on the other side screamed out in shock and pain, and Harry charged into the room.

Immediately, Harry's gaze fell on Mal where she was sprawled on the floor, both her forehead and lip now bleeding from the impact of the door and then the floor.

"Harry!" Mal was on her feet immediately.

Harry grinned. "Well, well, well, I've finally found what I've been looking for."

"Oh, yeah, what's that? A brain? Or are you still mindlessly following Uma?" Mal snarled.

The blunt brush with the door must have dazed Mal more than she was letting on, because Harry's hand found her throat all too easily. He dragged her forward until their noses were close to touching. He licked his lips. "I'm glad Uma gave me instructions not to kill you. Maybe she'll let me have a little fun with you before she removes your heart. You know the fun I'm talking about. The fun we used to have before you left for this rotten place."

He felt Mal shiver, and his grin widened. "Trust me. It'll be fun. For me."

The sound of approaching footsteps behind him made him release Mal and turn quickly. Someone, or multiple someones, were sprinting up the spiral staircase. But before these intruders had even reached the door, a weight slammed into his back and an arm curled around his neck. Mal had jumped onto his back and was attempting to strangle him.

* * *

Audrey frowned as Doug struggled against his bonds. "Doug, it's no use. Just stop."

"No. We have to get inside and help them. Those are our friends." He shifted again, and he seemed to be reaching for something in his pocket.

"What are you-"

"Ha!" In his hand, he clutched a small pocketknife. "I told my dad being a Boy Scout would pay off." He switched it open and shifted to maneuver his hand into place where he could begin sawing at the ropes.

* * *

Chad threw open the door to the tower room, armed with nothing more than a tourney stick that had been in his room from where he had stayed at the cottage the previous summer. His sword and other weapons he had brought from Charmington were still in the downstairs foyer and much too far out of reach.

Upon seeing Harry throw off Mal's attempted chokehold and toss her hard to the ground, Chad was glad Gil had come in and awoken them all just a minute earlier. They hadn't had but a few seconds to exchange words as everyone in the cottage had rushed to the kitchen to see the china cabinet overturned so that all the expensive and fragile dishware had shattered against the kitchen tile. And Gil had stood beside it, his hands raised as he quickly explained the situation with Harry.

Now, Cinderella was in the kitchen with Gil while Chad stood facing Harry with Ben and Evie both panting at his back.

Chad lunged forward with his tourney stick to block Harry from getting to Mal, but Harry caught the stick and twisted it out of his hands. Chad had been in a deep sleep when he had been awoken, so his grip was still weak.

"Cute that you've all come to Mal's aid," Harry said, drawing his sword as he spoke. He wrenched Mal to her feet and held her tightly against him, her back against his chest and the sword blade pressed against her throat. "Now, I wouldn't get too close. My hand just might slip."

Chad growled, clenching his teeth together, but he didn't move and neither did Ben or Evie. "Let her go," he said slowly. His gaze flitted from Harry's face to Mal's. Mal was staring straight at Chad while she mouthed words under her breath. He was trying to decipher them, thinking she had a plan and was wanting to communicate it to him. But then the glass doors to the balcony blew in, a powerful gust of wind shattering the glass and sprinkling the shards over the group like rain.

Harry cursed and released Mal, stumbling around to look over his shoulder at the shattered doors.

In Harry's confusion, Mal lunged forward to grab Evie's hand. "Everyone hold onto something!" she yelled.

Chad blinked but found himself suddenly sandwiched between Ben and the doorframe as they both clutched it. Immediately, the gust of wind that had blown into the room seemed to be rolling out in reverse, tugging at everything in the room with hurricane-level wind and dragging things toward the balcony. Chad could feel the wind tug at his clothes and hair, and his knees threatened to buckle because the wind was so forceful.

Harry was not so lucky as to have something stable to hold onto. He had taken a step toward the door only to find the wind pushing him back. He scrambled to reach for the bedpost, but grasped only at air. And then he was on his back, sliding through the glass on the floor toward the balcony. The furniture moved as well as the wind picked up even more speed. The floor groaned as the bed, wardrobe, and nightstand dragged across the floor. The wind was like a broom sweeping through the room, aiming to dispel anything that wasn't nailed down to the floor.

Chad watched the magic work, mesmerized by what power Mal could create with just a few words. But then the wardrobe burst open, and clothes of all colors went flying in all directions, whipping around like in a tornado.

Mal screamed as a winter coat and two dresses collided with her. Her hand slid from Evie's in a response to try to bat them away. But then she too was swept across to the other side of the room. She slammed into the doorframe that led to the balcony. Harry stood across from her, his form pressed against the wall from the force of the wind.

"Stop this madness, Mal!" Harry shouted, his voice barely audible above the rushing of the wind around the room.

"No!" Mal shouted back. "This ends now!" She held her hand out toward the nightstand, and flicked her wrist. Instantly, the wind direction changed to push the nightstand behind Harry, knocking his legs out from under him, and he crashed to the floor in front of her.

And again, the wind changed, once again blowing to sweep everything out the balcony doors. But, Mal had miscalculated, and in the few seconds that the wind took to change direction, Harry had pushed himself forward and latched his hands around one of her ankles.

The wind pushed at them both, and Mal was thrown off balance by it and Harry's grip. She crashed to the floor, and now that there was nothing blocking the path to the balcony for either of them, the wind ushered them both out. It pushed them out the shattered doors and over the rail of the balcony all within seconds.

A few seconds later, the wind died completely, and Chad, Evie, and Ben ran to the balcony railing.

* * *

Uma woke with a start and sat upright in bed. It took her a moment to realize what had woken her. Not nightmares; she had been taking her potions from Dr. Facilier religiously. Not the bed; it was so comfortable and didn't cause problems like her bed at the fish and chips restaurant or the one on board her ship. No, this pain was something different. It was a stabbing in her heart, and with each beat, it clenched.

And, she knew. She knew this had to mean Harry had died.

As soon as this realization hit, Uma was on her feet. She wrapped a robe around herself and sprinted out the door. Just down the hall, she stopped and hammered on the door to another room. Then she entered without waiting for a response.

"It is late, Uma. What do you need at this hour, dear?" came a silky, yet groggy voice from the darkness.

Uma clutched at her heart, breathing much more heavily than she should have been. "Your bondage spell," she panted. She meant a spell she had had Dr. Facilier perform on her and Harry just before Harry left to track down Mal and her friends. This spell would notify them if something was gravely wrong with the other person. "I think Harry's dead or dying or something."

There was the creak of bedsprings and the rustle of sheets. Then Dr. Facilier's face loomed out of the darkness in front of Uma. "And what," he said, "do you intend for me to do about it?"

"You've told me before that you can bring people back from the dead." Uma swallowed. The pain in her chest was easing, and she wondered if that meant Harry had officially passed on. "Go find him. Now."

"Bringing someone back from the beyond is not free. It takes a payment, and I cannot know that price until it is already done, my dear. Are you prepared to blindly pay a steep price?"

"Yes," Uma said quietly.

Dr. Facilier smiled. "Alright. I will find him. But, don't say I didn't warn you."


	9. Chapter 9

Chad was still panting when he reached the landing outside Mal's room. Despite the early morning hour he and Ben had risen to start digging the grave behind the house, it had taken them much longer than either boy had expected. But, this was probably because neither boy, in either of their short lives, had ever been asked to dig a grave. And Cinderella had wanted to make sure it was six feet deep to prevent the smell of the corpse from attracting animals that would dig it up once the decomposition had begun. Chad had never thought he was very tall, but having just finished digging a hole his height so he was eye-level with the ground when standing down in it, he thought he must seem like a giant. And that had only been half of the work. When they had moved the body to the grave, it had been much...stiffer...than he had expected.

He swallowed the bile that had risen in his throat again and raised a hand to knock on Mal's door. He wasn't even sure she would want to see anyone, let alone a sweaty, dirt-covered boy that had just confessed his heart to her just half a day previous. And given her condition...

"Come in," came the weak reply.

Chad opened the door and stepped inside. He closed the door softly behind him. "How are you feeling?"

Mal was sitting up in bed, her back cushioned by a pillow behind her to keep the stiff headboard from hurting her back further. The sheets were pulled up to her waist, effectively covering her legs. Her hands were curled in the topmost blanket, her knuckles white.

"The pain is-" Mal swallowed, "-bearable."

Chad's gaze swept over her and stopped on her hands. "Are you sure? I can ask Mom to get more painkillers."

"I've already had four doses since last night. I can't have any more for a few hours." Mal swallowed again and closed her eyes. As she exhaled, her grip on the blanket went slack. She opened her eyes again. "It's just pain and a little bit of tingling in my foot."

Chad stepped further into the room and leaned against the chest of drawers, which had been among the furniture Evie and Audrey had spent some of the early morning hours rearranging and putting back in order while Cinderella had cared for Mal's injuries that she could fix. "Tingling is good, though, isn't it? I mean, as compared to no feeling. That's what Mom told me at least."

Mal looked away, her eyes now trained on the broken glass doors. "I've been awake for three hours, working on fixing the paralysis. But, this isn't like fixing broken bone. If I get nerve magic wrong, it can cause even worse damage. So, it's taken me those three hours to achieve the tingling sensation in my toes. It's going to take a long time to fix this all the way up to my waist." She heaved a sigh. "But, I'm lucky, I guess. Luckier than Harry, I mean. As least me falling on top of him cushioned my blow." She gave a short laugh.

Chad didn't laugh. He didn't know what to say to her. She had been lucky, yes, but now they were right back where they had started a few days ago; Mal couldn't walk, but now it was much much worse. And if anything made Chad more anxious than Uma's henchman tracking them down so quickly, it was Mal being injured. How could she defend herself if half of her was paralyzed until she figured out the right spells to cure herself? And how long would it take? How much strength would it take out of her to do even a little bit?

"Well, do you need anything? Food? Water?" Chad asked, straightening up. He wanted to help her somehow, to hold her if she would let him. But, he knew that was just a false hope. Even if she did allow herself to be held, it wouldn't mean the same to her. But, either way, he knew he needed a shower before he did anything else. He had just wanted to check on her.

Mal shook her head, still staring out the window. "I'm fine."

"Ok, well, I'll be downstairs showering, but then I can come back up. Mom, Ben, Evie, Doug, and Audrey all went to that cellar out in the woods to retrieve the magical weapons Fairy Godmother told us about. They won't be back for a while, and Gil's downstairs."

"Is he staying?" Mal asked.

"I don't know. I don't think so. Ben wants to talk to him first before he decides where he's going though." Chad turned to go. "Just yell if you need me, ok?"

Chad made it to the door before Mal's quiet voice broke the silence once more. "Chad, have you ever killed someone? Or, well, never mind. I just meant, have you ever thought of yourself as capable of murder?"

Chad turned back to face her. "I've been angry with people and wanted to throw a punch, but, no, I've never seriously thought about killing someone. But, Mal, that wasn't mur-"

"I have," Mal cut in.

"You, you've what?" Chad asked, frowning in confusion.

"I have thought about killing people. Before I came to Auradon the first time, I used to picture it often. Murder isn't uncommon on an isle of criminals and villains. I might have run across a dead body every two weeks before the garbage trolls could find it and toss it into the sea." She glanced sideways at him for the briefest of moments as if she were shyly admitting something she wasn't supposed to. "That's what we do with bodies on the Isle. The barrier only keeps living things inside it, so we toss the deceased into the sea to wash up on Auradon beaches to remind you of our ghastly existence. And, I don't know...murder seemed like an easy option. It was hard enough to stay alive on the Isle just scavenging for food, and sometimes, I got really angry. I imagined, fantasized, about killing my enemies. I used to think it would be the most wonderful act of cruelty to stare into their eyes as their life dimmed and was finally snuffed out. I thought it would be like a power trip or adrenaline or something like that."

Chad swallowed. "Ok," he said, because honestly, he had no other words. He wasn't sure how to react at all to that revelation. "And, and what do you think now?"

Mal dropped her gaze to the bumps under the covers that were her knees. "Now, I think I was so so wrong. I don't feel powerful. I feel dirty and guilty. Because, when I chose Good, I chose to break myself of that way of thinking from the Isle, and now...now, I'm just like them all over again. I'm Harry and Uma and my mom. I'm a killer." She swallowed and then wiped at her eyes.

"Mal," Chad began, but at that moment, a door downstairs slammed and was quickly followed by the sounds of a raised voice and crying that verged on screaming. He winced. "Mal, listen, you are not a killer. It was an accident. It was self-defense. Please, just get some rest. I'll be back after I shower and check on whoever is downstairs."

"Sounds like Doug," Mal said softly, and she turned her gaze back to the balcony where she could see the forest.

* * *

When Chad reached the ground level, it was to find Doug facedown in a couch cushion, sobbing at the top of his lungs. Audrey was pacing nearby, talking quietly to someone on the phone. As he approached, she glanced to him, wished the person on the phone goodbye, and hung up.

Chad's expression seemed to be enough of a question for Audrey, because she immediately starting explaining. "That was Jane. She called just after we got into the forest, and she relayed some information." Quietly, so as not to disturb Doug probably, Audrey filled Chad in on the situation and how Jane hoped for them all to meet up at Mulan and Shang's in the north to regroup and make a battle plan with Arthur and his knights. She also told him the news that had set Doug off; apparently, no one in his entire immediate or extended family was still alive.

"Does Ben know about the plan?" was Chad's first question even though he had multiple more questions about how on earth Jane had managed to get to Camelot in one piece and coerce Arthur into helping so quickly.

Audrey shook her head. "No, when Doug got the call, Jane told him about his family first, so we came back here. Ben, Evie, and your mom went on to the armory cellar. I just figured we'd fill them in when they get back and then maybe make a plan for us all to go to the meet-up location."

Chad nodded absently, his thoughts racing. "But Mal can't..."

"I know. We'll think of something." She turned to Doug and moved to sit on the couch by his shoulder and rubbed his back.

Chad looked around, suddenly realizing what was out of place. "Audrey, where's Gil?"

"Out at the grave," Audrey said. "He's talking to it. Not sure if it's an apology or a good riddance type of thing."

Chad nodded again, feeling much more like a bobblehead with each passing moment. He didn't know how to react to all this news except nod, go shower, and deal with it in a bit. "Look, I'm going to go shower. Yell if you need something or if they get back before I'm out for some reason."

* * *

It was hours before Cinderella, Ben, and Evie returned with backpacks and totes loaded with magical weapons, grenades, potions, and more from the hidden cellar. While Cinderella made them all lunch and tea, Ben and Chad loaded the car Chad had loaned Ben and Evie. After filling in Ben and Evie, they had made a plan for Doug, Audrey, Ben, and Evie to head to Mulan and Shang's place that afternoon. Chad and Mal would return to the Charmington palace with Cinderella and stay there for a few days while Mal worked her magic to recover the use of her legs. They would rejoin the others later. Even though Chad had suggested they just stay put at the cottage, Mal had rejected the idea on the claim that if Harry and Gil had found them, then Uma knew where they were. But, Chad knew the real reason Mal was so adamant about leaving the cottage was because she knew Harry's grave was just nearby, and it made her uncomfortable.

Gil had decided to return to Auradon City without Uma's knowledge. He wanted to find a way to rescue his siblings himself, but he knew he had to do it quickly before Uma figured out the lack of communication from Harry meant something more sinister than just being busy with the mission or a bad cell signal. Ben had reluctantly let him go, but in the end, they figured it wouldn't matter since they hadn't allowed Gil to sit in on their planning, and thus, he wouldn't be able to tell Uma where they were headed next.

"Car's packed," Chad said, pushing open the door to Mal's room. "Are you ready to go?"

Mal nodded, though she felt like her stomach was full of rocks continuously tossing around. "Did the others already leave?"

"Yeah, it's just us and Mom left. We've put more pillows in the back of the van so you can be more comfortable."

"Thanks," Mal murmured. "Um, how..." She trailed off, hoping he saw where this was going. She hadn't made any more progress with the damaged nerves in her spine and legs except to wiggle her tingly toes. So, the only way she was getting downstairs...

"I'm going to carry you," Chad said, striding over to the bed. "I, uh, I mean, if that's ok."

"I don't think I have a choice to be not-ok with it," Mal grumbled, using her arms to push herself up a bit. It was difficult though. She didn't realize just how much she relied on her legs to do something simple like help sit her up in bed until she couldn't use them anymore.

Chad's lips pressed into a thin line. "Well, Mom can't lift you exactly. She's a twig."

"That's not what I meant!" Mal snapped. "I meant I wish I didn't have to be carried at all. It has nothing to do with you. This is the second time I've had my legs injured in a week, and I'm annoyed that it seems to be becoming a habit. It feels weak."

"Ok." Chad splayed his fingers, raising his hands in surrender. "Ok, Mal. Listen, no one thinks you're weak. If anything, we think you're stronger for all of this. Just, just let me get you to the car, ok?"

Mal crossed her arms over her chest and gave a short nod, not looking at him. When he scooped her up a few moments later, she was stiff in his arms and only put her arms around his neck at his request. However, by the time they had descended the spiral staircase, she was surprised to find herself relaxing a bit in his arms, and her embrace around his neck was much more voluntary than it had been.


	10. Chapter 10

Carlos paced back and forth across the drawing room of Roger and Anita's manor house, his dirty shoes wearing a dark track in the fluffy cream-colored carpet. But no one in the room seemed to care, and even though Anita normally would have said something or had him take off his shoes, she remained silent. In fact, her shoes and those of her husband's were just as filthy. The three of them had just finished herding 99 dalmatians to the field behind the house in the pouring rain. That way, at least, when Carlos's parents arrived, the pair would be forced to walk around the manor to find the dogs. And, hopefully, that meant they would have time to stop them.

"You're absolutely sure they're coming tonight?" Roger asked from his seat by the fireplace.

Carlos turned away from the two tall windows that faced the driveway. He stopped between them so that he stood in the darkness between the two columns of moonlight they allowed to span across the carpet. "I'm sure. I have my laptop, and I checked it the whole way here when I could get my hotspot to work. The cameras I've hacked show they're headed this way. Last I checked, they passed the dairy factory in the next town. That's the closest security camera to here I could find."

"And that was right before you knocked on the door?" Anita asked.

Carlos nodded. "Yeah, so, given distance and..." He looked to a spot on the carpet, doing some quick rough calculations in his head. "Well, they should be only ten minutes out at most if they didn't stop or anything."

Anita shifted in her seat, her knees pressed together under her skirt and her hands clasped together tightly in her lap. "And you said your father is just as bad as Cruella? Who is he? You didn't tell us much."

Carlos glanced back out to the driveway. True, he hadn't taken much time to explain things to Roger and Anita. He had arrived just an hour ago on a horse he had borrowed from Shang and Mulan's stables. Getting the hang of that had been extremely tricky. He had woken Roger and Anita and quickly explained the situation, only giving them enough so they knew they needed to hurry and gather the dogs into one location before his parents got there. If the dogs were running around the grounds like they were typically allowed to do, Carlos worried they would get harmed in the confrontation with his parents.

As for how that confrontation would go, Carlos already knew. He didn't want it to go the way he thought it would, but knowing his parents, he would have no other choice. As such, the gun Shang had given him weighed heavily against his hip, a reminder that killing was not to be taken lightly but was sometimes necessary. Because, while Carlos was hesitant to shoot a gun, neither of his parents were. He just prayed they hadn't gotten their hands onto any guns on the way there. Maybe if they were unarmed, the result of this encounter would be different.

"He's, um, well, you probably won't know him," Carlos said, looking back to Anita for a moment before the clatter of nails on the tile floor of the foyer made him look to his left. Two adult dalmatians bounded into the drawing room. Pongo and Perdita. They were the only ones Roger and Anita had refused to put in the back field. Apparently, the original two were the only ones allowed to sleep in the couple's upstairs room.

Carlos stooped to scratch Pongo behind the ears while Perdita sat beside Anita's feet. "My father's name is Jean-Pierre La Pelt."

At Anita's gasp, Carlos looked up at her and straightened. "So, you do know him."

Anita glanced at Roger, whose expression was like granite. "We heard about Cruella's attempt for the puppy coat in Paris after she was let out of prison on probation. And that name was thrown around with hers a lot in the papers. He's a furrier and, well, he just sounded awful." She looked back at Carlos. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean, I..."

Carlos shook his head. "Don't worry about it. I don't like him either. He used to beat me and put out his cigarette butts on my skin. Believe me, you and I are on the same page about how bad he is. The only reason he didn't kill me when I was on the Isle was because my mother wanted to keep me around to do her errands." He shrugged off Anita's look of horror and sympathy that followed this confession. He had never admitted the crimes of his parents out loud to anyone besides Evie. But now, with all the death and chaos going on in Auradon, the words slipped easily from his tongue, like he was now numb to their meaning in light of what could soon be happening to him.

"They're here," Roger said quietly.

Carlos followed his gaze to the driveway. Cruella's car, which Carlos could recognize just by touch if he had to from all the times he had washed and waxed that monstrosity, was pulling up the driveway. Its headlights were off, but the moonlight caught its red paint job easily as it turned around the large fountain in the looped driveway.

"What's the plan?" Anita asked, getting to her feet as the car halted and shuddered to silence.

Carlos's heart felt like it might leap out of his chest and make a break for it. His parents were getting out of the car, and even in the rain and darkness, he could see they were smiling. The next moment, the moonlight caught on something shiny in Cruella's hand, and Carlos's heart decided that death inside the safety of his ribcage was safer. She had a gun.

He looked over his shoulder, and sounding much braver than he felt, said, "You two stay here. I'm going to talk to them."

"Talk to them? There's no talking to Cruella," Roger said.

Carlos nodded stiffly. "It's ok. Just stay inside."

He left the couple in the darkness of the drawing room, his feet feeling like they were made of lead as he moved to the foyer and placed his hand on the doorknob of the front door. This was it. This was the only barrier left between him and his parents and what he saw to be inevitable of either his own death or theirs. Because, how else could he stop two puppy-killing lunatics? And if he didn't, Cruella would surely shoot him.

"Mother!" Carlos heard himself call out to Cruella before he had even registered that he had opened the door and stepped outside. He closed the door firmly behind him, standing with his back pressed against the wood so he wouldn't fall down the short flight of steps in terror. There was no going back now.

"Ah, look who it is! A traitorous son," Cruella growled, sweeping around the car to stand on the side closest to the steps. Jean-Pierre stood beside her, grinning and holding a - Carlos's stomach lurched - his favorite whip from the Isle. Yes, that was correct. Jean-Pierre had as many whips as Cruella did furs, which meant, of course, he had a favorite, and he knew how to use it well. Too well for Carlos's liking.

"You two need to leave," Carlos said, pushing his voice to sound more authoritative, but he knew it came out shaky from the way Jean-Pierre smirked.

"Leave? Oh, I don't think so. Not before we have blood and furs," Jean-Pierre said with a maniacal, crooked grin. "And, maybe not even then. What do you think, Ella? I think I could see us living here once we've gotten rid of all the inhabitants."

"I quite agree," Cruella said, now grinning herself. She tapped the barrel of the handgun against her palm. "Are you going to be one of those casualties or will you return to us and help Mama and Papa like we raised you?"

"I will never help you," Carlos said. He swallowed the nerves that rose with his statement.

Cruella's grin fell into a snarl. "Fine." She raised the gun and fired.

Carlos ducked right in time for the bullet to punch a hole through the door instead of his head. But, by glancing at the hole, the shot would have missed regardless.

"That was a warning," Cruella said as she cocked the gun again. "Next time, it's going between your eyes."

"Or through your nose," Jean-Pierre said. "We're not picky. Now, come on, invite us inside out of this rain, why don't you?"

"I have a better idea," Carlos said, and drew the gun from the holster at his hip. "I put a bullet through your nose."

Rage flared up in Carlos's chest when Jean-Pierre and Cruella just laughed.

"You've grown a pair, haven't you?" Jean-Pierre cackled. In an instant, the whip uncoiled from his hand. He lunged, and the whip flashed through the air. It wrapped around Carlos's wrist with stinging pain that shot up his forearm.

Carlos mentally cursed himself. Extending his arm had put him just within reach of the whip once his father had jumped forward. But, he didn't have much time to scold himself as Jean-Pierre used the whip to tug Carlos down the stairs to him.

They were nose-to-nose when Jean-Pierre wrenched the gun from Carlos's hand. "We should have done this a long time ago, boy-o."

"Turn him around! Turn him here!" Cruella chirped.

Carlos grunted as Jean-Pierre twisted his captured arm behind his back and turned him to face Cruella. "You both are sick," Carlos spat even as his stomach did somersaults. They were going to kill him. His parents were going to kill him and have fun doing it.

"No, we're just part of a new villain era. And you could have been part of it." Jean-Pierre gave Carlos a mock pout. "But, I guess, you don't like luxury."

"I don't like cruelty."

Cruella laughed. "What's in a name?" She raised the gun, and Carlos closed his eyes. His father was too strong to fight against. He couldn't move an inch, let alone dodge a bullet. This was it. This was how it all ended.

A shot rang out, and Carlos's heart clenched. But, it didn't seem like the bullet had struck him. Jean-Pierre's grip went slack just as Cruella shrieked and a second shot fired. This one hit. Carlos's right thigh erupted with fire, and he cried out. He dropped to his knees at the same moment his father's lifeless body hit the ground with a muddy splat.

The next moments happened in a blur. As pain radiated through his leg and blood seeped from beneath his fingers, Carlos watched the events in a daze. Roger, clutching a gun of his own, stood in the doorway. He turned from where he had been staring at Jean-Pierre and fired at Cruella. Cruella screamed and threw herself sideways so that the bullet punched through the back window of her car instead. She scrambled around on the ground for her dropped gun but never found it. Another shot, and she slid down into the mud behind the rear tire of her car, lifeless.

Carlos looked back at Roger, who was now rushing down the stairs toward him with Anita and the two dalmatians close behind.

"Son, you alright?" Roger asked, gripping his shoulder tightly. "Look at me!"

Carlos looked up at him lazily, his eyelids drooping and his gaze sliding in and out of focus.

"Roger," Anita said, pointing to Carlos's leg. "He's in shock. Get him inside. Hurry!"

* * *

The moon had already slid past its apex for the night when a dark green sports car pulled neatly into the driveway of the Cinderellasberg cottage. A moment after silencing the car, a man in a clean-cut maroon suit and black gloves stepped out of the car. He cradled a small device in his hand, its screen bright. In an instant, he disappeared around the back of the house.

"I think this is all rather unnecessary, Uma dearest," Dr. Facilier said. He walked past a line of neatly trimmed bushes and plucked a few of their leaves with his free hand as he did so.

"I told you," Uma said from the phone clutched in the thin man's hand. She rolled her eyes and huffed. "I don't want any mistakes. I have to see it for myself. I have to know he's alright."

"Fine, but you must be prepared. He's been dead for about twenty-four hours. And I'm not sure how he died. This may not be pretty."

"I don't care."

Dr. Facilier shrugged a shoulder and let the leaves fall from his fingertips as he continued to the grave behind the house. It had not taken him long to locate the departure point of Harry's soul using his shadow magic. In fact, it had been very easy to do, considering he suspected Harry's body would not have been done the courtesy of being boxed up to be buried. No, the less between the body and the soil, the better he could find it. And that's why he could so confidently walk directly to the unmarked grave without having ever set foot there before now.

"This may take a little bit," Dr. Facilier said as he folded himself neatly into a cross-legged sitting position at the foot of the dirt pile.

"That's fine. This line is secure," Uma said.

Dr. Facilier set the phone beside him, using a few rocks and sticks to prop it up so that Uma would be able to see that grave. He slid out of his jacket and laid it aside in the grass. "Alright. Now, hush, darling."

Uma was silent as the voodoo man worked in whispered incantations and subtle hand movements for the next quarter of an hour. Once seeming satisfied, Dr. Facilier dropped his hands to his lap and sat quietly.

After a moment of silence, Uma huffed. "Well?"

"Give it time," he answered. "His soul has wandered a bit. It's on its way back. And even then, he must want to live for my call to work."

"What does that mean?" Uma snapped, the impatience clear in her voice.

"It means we must wait. I can only do so much. He must do the rest." Dr. Facilier closed his eyes, effectively blocking out Uma's resulting eye roll on the phone's screen.

Then the earth beneath Dr. Facilier gave a small shudder. It was followed by a longer shudder, and a groan as the wind suddenly changed directions.

Dr. Facilier smiled and opened his eyes. He watched the pile of dirt that composed the grave, his eyes traveling over it slowly as if searching for something. Finally, after a long moment, the dirt began to shift and cascade to the side of the mound as something from underneath pushed it up.

"Oh my Atlantis," Uma breathed.

A pale hand emerged from the tossed earth. Its nails were caked with dirt, and the white skin seemed paler than the moonlight itself.

Dr. Facilier stood, pushed up the sleeves of his shirt, and silently folded his frame in half to lean down to the hand. He extended his own, gripped the ghostly appendage, and pulled. After a few minutes of his assistance combined with Harry's, the effort yielded one horrifyingly pale and extremely dirty teenage boy.

"Hello, Harry," Dr. Facilier said with a large grin. He brushed his lightly soiled gloved hands off on his trousers.

Harry just blinked slowly, his features set into a frown. "What happened?"

"Ah, well, you were dead. Come on. Come inside, and I'll explain." The man stooped to retrieve the phone and smiled at Uma's image. "Everything's fine. I-"

"Is that Uma?" Harry launched himself forward, grabbing the man's forearm and pulling the phone toward him.

But suddenly the phone tumbled to the ground, lost from Dr. Facilier's grip. And Dr. Facilier was screaming.

"Harry! Harry? What's happening?" Uma shouted from the phone on the ground. It had landed face up, but all she was facing was the abyss of the night sky directly above.

Harry's eyes were wide as he backpedaled from the shadow man. "He's...Uma, he's...m-melting."

Harry wasn't exaggerating. Where Harry had touched his bare skin of his hand to that of Dr. Facilier's exposed forearm, large red boils had sprung to life, swelled, and popped in rapid succession. As the yellow pus ran down the man's arm, the flesh began to disintegrate. Muscle and sinew dropped off the bone like candle wax.

"What do you mean he's melting?!"

Harry scrambled to pick up the phone and turned it so Uma could see. Her scream cut through the night.

"What happened?!"

"HE TOUCHED ME!" Dr. Facilier bellowed. "THIS IS YOUR PRICE, UMA! ACIDIC TOUCH!"

Harry turned the phone's screen back to himself and stared at Uma. "What does he mean, Uma?"

"I..." Uma had gone pale, and her eyes were wet with tears. "You died, Harry. And I had him bring you back. He said there would be a price, but I never thought...oh my..." She put a hand to her mouth, closed her eyes, and swallowed with difficulty. "Harry, come back to the palace. Now. And don't touch anyone else."

She hung up before Harry could say another word, and he was left staring at a blank screen. He pocketed the phone and turned back to the writhing man in the grass. The arm Harry had touched was now gone up to the elbow, and Dr. Facilier was screaming.

"I can make it stop," Harry said confidently.

Dr. Facilier just cried and shook his head. "It's too late. I can't even fix this."

Harry took a step forward, his mind suddenly made up as a dark thought took hold of him. "I didn't say I would make it better."

"Wha-" But the man's speech disintegrated into pitiful screams much as his face did a second later when Harry pressed both his hands over the man's face and held him down to the ground. The struggle was brief, but Harry only released his hold when he felt his thumbs sink through the eye sockets into nothingness. Just sleek slimy bone remained under his fingertips.

Satisfied, Harry sat back on his heels and pulled the glove from the man's hand. After a moment of searching through the grass, Harry found the other glove stained with blood around the cuff. He pulled them onto his own hands and flexed his hands to get a feel for the material. Uma may have been horrified at Harry's curse, but Harry felt quite the opposite. In truth, this felt like a superpower, and he would be ready to use it when the time came.

* * *

Uma sank back into her chair, her heart beating fast and her eyes far more watery than she ever wanted. What had she done? She hadn't even given thought to what the price for bringing Harry back might be because she had figured it was worth it no matter the cost. But...that? Melting flesh, screaming, and blood. All from his touch.

She buried her face in her hands, her tears coming fast and slick against her palms. She had cursed him. He would never be able to touch anyone ever again without severe physical harm or even death. Oh no. That meant...she and Harry. All aspects of their physical relationship were now gone. Any fantasies about creating a new legacy of villain royals by having a child with Harry someday was now nonexistent. Snuffed out. Slipping through her fingers faster than Dr. Facilier's skin had disappeared.

A knock came at the study door, and Uma seethed with rage. What did her crew want now? To brag about their newest triumphs to their leader? Normally, she would have been in the mood for it, would have wanted to hear how the Auradon citizens were squirming under the thumb of her reign as she pressed harder and harder for control and loyalty. But it was past midnight, and frankly, she wanted to do the killing rather than hear about it at this moment. So, in a flurry of rage, she seized the snow globe from the corner of the desk and hurled it at the door. It shattered against the wall.

"WHAT?!" Uma barked.

The door slowly opened, and Gil poked his head into the room.

Uma was immediately on her feet and marching over to him. "You. You were supposed to keep Harry safe!"

"I-"

"I know he died. And I don't want your excuses! Where's Ben and Mal? Tell me you at least killed some of them before crawling back here," Uma snapped.

Gil swallowed. "I couldn't protect Harry. I was following his orders and stayed with some hostages we had picked up along the way." At Uma's sour look, he hurried on. "They were friends of Ben's, and we thought they might be good leverage. But, it was Mal. She killed Harry before I even knew what happened."

Uma grit her teeth together, her hands closing into fists. "Well, what did happen?"

"She used magic and pushed him off the tower balcony. He fell and was killed. I'm so sorry, Uma."

Uma held up a hand. "Don't be sorry. I have already fixed your blunder. Dr. Facilier revived Harry tonight." She didn't even acknowledge Gil's flinch of shock and revulsion at this revelation. "Harry is on his way back here. But, how do you know so much about what happened if you weren't near him?"

Gil swallowed. "Ben and Mal and their friends found me shortly after the incident and took me captive. They locked me in a room in the cottage while they discussed what to do, but they didn't realize that I could hear them through a vent. I know where they're headed and what their plan is."

Uma's frown twitched into a smirk. "Hmm, so you are somewhat useful after all. Tell me."

Gil quickly explained about the plan to meet up at Mulan and Shang's in the north and how Jane had gotten the army from Camelot to assist them. By the time he had filled her in, Uma's expression was grim again.

"Well, we can't have that." She turned and walked to the fireplace before turning and walking back to Gil. She paced this path a few more times before stopping in the middle of it. "I'll have to go myself."

"Why?"

"Well, clearly, I can't trust you to get anything done. And Harry..." She trailed off and scrubbed a hand over her face. "Listen, I will tell the Second Mate he's in charge until I get back."

"Are you sure your brother can-"

"Are you challenging me?" Uma snarled, taking a step toward him. "Ulysses will do as he's been instructed. He's been heading up the patrols to enforce the curfew and communication restrictions. He'll be fine while I'm away."

"Well, what about when Harry gets here?" Gil asked.

"When Harry gets here, you and Ulysses will take him to a cell downstairs. I will figure out what to do when I return. By then, this whole Ben and Mal and hero resistance thing they're brewing up will have been taken care of." Uma huffed and returned to the desk. She opened the middle drawer and took out Mal's spell book. She would need it if she was going north to destroy a resistance with only herself and a handful of comrades.

"Uma," Gil said softly.

"What?" she grumbled, rifling through papers on the desk.

"Are you mad at Harry? He tried his best to kill Mal. You know that."

Uma went still and stared at the mess of papers for a long moment. Then she said quietly, "No. Something went wrong with his resurrection. He isn't safe."

"Well, can't Facilier find a spell to fix it?"

"As far as I know, Facilier is dead. He told me there would be a price to pay for bringing Harry back, but I..." Uma brushed her braids over her shoulder, her hands shaking. "I didn't realize it would be this bad."

Gil stepped closer to the desk, enough that she could she his boots if she slanted her eyes sideways. "What happened, Uma?"

"I saw it in a videochat with Facilier. When Harry touched his skin, he-" Uma swallowed, "Facilier's skin started to melt. He yelled something about Harry's touch now being acidic. It was, it was sickening. But you know Harry. He likes the power and the blood. Like I do, but much more on the blood side. I don't want to take any chances that he'll go on a killing spree for fun. So, when he gets here, lock him up. Do not touch his skin."

Gil blinked, and when Uma looked at him, she could tell he was shocked by this revelation. "So...right, so, Harry's got new magic death powers."

"Essentially."

"What good is locking him up going to do? What will happen when you get back?"

"I don't know, and you needn't worry about that. I'll handle it. But, I can't have him loose around here until I'm back. Understood?"

Gil gave a stiff nod. "So, you're heading out in the morning?"

"Yes," Uma said with a huff. "Go wake Ulysses for me. I need to speak with my brother."


	11. Chapter 11

Mal took a deep breath and tried the spell again. The tingling sensation in her toes that she had achieved had neither disappeared nor improved. Since she had arrived at the Charmington palace with Chad and his mother the previous afternoon, she had been scribbling down spells, trying them, recording their effects, and rewording and rephrasing them until her mind felt like mush. She had thought that after a full night's rest, she would be able to make some progress. But, now, it was the morning, and this spell wasn't working. Neither had the other four she had tried in the hours before Cinderella had brought her a large breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast, and orange slices.

With a growl of frustration, she ripped the page out of the spiral notebook, balled it up, and threw it onto the floor with its fellow failures. She scrubbed a hand over her face, trying to think of a combination of words or some different synonyms she hadn't tried yet. This shouldn't have been this hard, yet the solution to the nerve repair her legs needed seemed to be doing its best to illude her.

She pushed herself up from where she had slipped down in bed over the past few hours since Cinderella had helped her sit up against the headboard. It wasn't easy to do, especially since Mal kept trying to move her legs to help. It was just muscle memory, but it was endlessly frustrating. All she could rely on was her upper body strength, which would not be enough if she fell out of bed. Or, the more likely situation, if she were attacked by more of Uma's cronies in the dead of night.

Mal pushed her hair out of her eyes as she did the same with thoughts of Harry. Dwelling on it would not make him come back, even if she wanted him to. It would not change the fact she was a killer. It would not change anything. So, she had to make herself put those thoughts and feelings behind her.

A knock came at the door, and the door swung inward a moment later.

Chad grinned as he strode in the room. "Morning. Mom thought you might want a refill on your milk. She says it makes for strong bones." He nodded to the glass of milk in his hand and then set it on the nightstand beside her empty glass.

Mal sighed and looked away, training her focus on the nearest wad of paper littering the floor. "It's not my bones I need help with."

"Can't hurt, can it?"

Mal severely wanted to ask him what he was really doing in her room. What it was that he really wanted. She wanted him to get out, because she couldn't stand the thought of him doing something simply to be nice. That wasn't how things worked in her world. When anyone did anything remotely kind on the Isle, it was because they either wanted something from you or were stalling while their partner stole the said something from you. Sure, Mal knew it was different in Auradon. It had certainly been different with Ben, but she still wasn't used to it. Unwarranted kindness was still somewhat foreign. Granted, she now knew Chad's reasons for his kindness. His attraction to her had come as a surprise, which was probably the real reason she so desperately wanted him to leave her room. The longer he stayed, the harder it was to resist the urge to bring up their conversation at the cottage.

"Going for a swim?" Mal asked after turning her attention back to him and raising an eyebrow at his attire.

Chad glanced down at himself. He was wearing swimming trunks and a white tank top. "Oh, yeah. I thought I'd go for a dip to clear my head."

"How can you go swimming at a time like this?" Mal asked. There was no venom in her voice, but pure curiosity. Not that she would know due to her lack of experience with the water, but swimming sounded like something Chad did to relax. How could he find the peace of mind to allow himself to relax? Seriously, there could be villains down the street or at the nearest drive thru.

Chad shrugged a shoulder. "I just can. Dad's been watching the security cameras all morning. Phillip and Aurora have been helping too. Dad and Phillip actually already caught up with Lady Tremaine and her daughters as they entered town this morning. They're in custody. With your mom not at large, we really don't have any magic wielders heading this way yet. They'll get here, sure, but, eh, I have time for some laps. Besides, it's not like I'm wasting travel time. You said you wanted to stay here until you could fix your legs."

Mal pressed her lips into a thin line. "Hey, it's not like I paralyzed myself on purpose. If I'm slowing you down or-"

He raised his hands in surrender. "Mal, stop. I didn't mean anything like that. Just focus on healing. I've packed a couple more things from my room, and I'm ready to go when you are. I'm not rushing you or anything."

Mal crossed her arms over her chest, glowering. She knew she was picking a fight for no reason. She had said she wanted to stay in Charmington to heal. Traveling just from Cinderellasberg to Charmington had been extremely uncomfortable in the back of the van. With the long distance to Mulan and Shang's, she didn't want to imagine how much worse it would be to make that journey while still paralyzed. After all, there were roadside ambushes and bathroom breaks to think of. No way was she getting back on the road without being able to take care of herself.

But, still, her patience was thin, and her self control was thinner. She wanted him out of her room. She wanted him out before the questions that had been rocketing around her brain could have the chance to spill out. She so desperately wanted him to leave before the vulnerable side of herself could muster up the courage to start talking about feelings.

"Fine." Mal picked up the notebook and pen to go back to trying to figure out the correct spell to heal her legs. The more she focused on the paper though, the more she was also aware that Chad had made no move to leave. She could see him standing there just out of the corner of her eye. She huffed and snapped her gaze up to meet his. "What?"

Chad laughed and shook his head. "You're doing that thing that Ben told me about."

Mal's eyes narrowed. "What thing?"

"He used to complain how any time he made progress with you, you'd immediately try to shut him out."

Mal clicked the pen slowly several times as if she was counting to ten to calm her anger and her nerves. Honestly, she wasn't sure which one was more prevalent at the moment. She exhaled heavily through her nose before speaking again. "I'm not trying to shut you out. I'm trying to concentrate." A lie. Most definitely a lie.

Chad studied her for a moment and then, as if deciding she might be telling the truth, shrugged. "Ok. Ok. My mistake. Anyways, would you maybe want to come concentrate down by the pool?"

"I can't swim. Even if I do heal myself, I can't," Mal said.

"That's why I said 'by the pool,' not in it." Chad glanced to the one window in the room. "Seriously, this room doesn't get a whole lot of natural light. It might do some good or give you some inspiration to be outside."

Mal clicked the pen again, considering it.

As she opened her mouth to reply, he cut her off quickly. "And don't say no just because you know I'll have to carry you. That's not an excuse for staying cooped up in here like a vampire."

Mal actually smiled at that. And then she changed her answer that she had been about to give. "Ok, I'll go outside."

* * *

Jane collapsed onto her bed gratefully. It wasn't even noon yet, but she felt thoroughly drained. Merlin had woken her up at dawn to start magic training, and while it had been fun, it had been one of the most exhausting things she had ever done.

He had started her off with what he claimed was the most basic and important spell to know: fire. For hours, he instructed her in how to create flames, how to grow and spread them to the desired size, and how to extinguish them safely. The first time she managed to make a periwinkle blue fireball in her hand, she lost her concentration in shock and ended up burning her hand. They had had to take a break while Merlin treated her with his miracle burn salve. By the end of the session, Jane had been dripping sweat from the combined heat of the flames and effort it took to craft them into being.

It hadn't helped that her mind had been on Carlos all morning. She had woken up to texts from him explaining what had happened with his parents and how he had been shot. He said he was alright and the wound was treated, but that didn't stop her from worrying about him constantly.

She rolled over and grabbed her phone from the nightstand. Merlin didn't allow cell phones in magic lessons, so she had had to leave her phone in her room. Now, she checked her texts and responded to Carlos, Audrey, and Lonnie. It seemed like things were headed in the right direction despite her worry. Carlos had gotten out of bed with Roger's help to eat breakfast at the table. Audrey said she, Ben, Evie, and Doug had arrived safely at Mulan and Shang's. And Lonnie said she was keeping herself busy by training with Jay. As for where Jane was in Camelot, she could watch the knights and Arthur train below one of her windows, and his army was gathering from all over the country into the capital. They would be ready to leave soon. At least, Jane hoped so.

After the replies had been sent, she turned onto her back and stared up at the canopy of her bed. Instantly, she felt her eyelids grow heavy. Merlin had called a break for an hour lunch, and then it would be back to training. Maybe she would just use that time for a power nap and then nab a sandwich from the kitchen. Yeah, that sounded like a good idea.

* * *

Evie handed both Jay and Lonnie bottles of water as soon as they stopped sparring for a five minute break.

"That move was awesome," Jay told Lonnie, rolling his shoulder as he massaged his neck. "I'm going to be sore from that one."

Lonnie just laughed. "What about you, Evie? When are you going to get out there?"

Evie blinked. She had been focusing on Ben who was on the other side of the gymnasium. He had been sparring with a punching bag ever since he had knocked one of Jay's teeth out accidentally. Jay wasn't concerned since it was in the back and didn't "damage his good looks" as he put it, but he had still decided to call it quits with Ben for the day. There was simply too much anger in Ben for the young king to control even against his friends in a sparring match. As Evie had both predicted and hoped for, Ben's grief had transitioned into anger. He was talking battle plans with Mulan and Shang, analyzing weapon effectiveness against certain villains or magic, and more. And they had only been there one night. The drive up from Cinderellasberg had obviously helped clear Ben's mind.

"Uh, what?" Evie asked, shifting her gaze to Lonnie.

"I asked when you're starting your training."

Evie shrugged. "I might help Ben."

Lonnie raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure? You could spar with me. Or I can go get my mom."

"Evie can handle him," Jay said with a wink. "I took the brunt of it, but he looks a little tired." He looked over his shoulder at Ben and then back to Evie. "He looks like he's getting a little sloppy."

"Of course he is," Lonnie said. She took a gulp from her bottle. "He's been going at that thing practically non-stop since we came in here. He's tired."

"When we were tired on the Isle, we kept training," Jay said. "We kept pushing ourselves. Sometimes, until we passed out."

"That can't be healthy. You have to rest."

"You can't rest in a fight on the Isle. There are no rules. And it goes until someone gives up, so that's how we trained. That's how we need to train now. At least, if Evie makes Ben train that way, maybe it'll get all of that anger down to a more manageable level for him."

Lonnie frowned over the top of her bottle. "I don't think any amount of sparring will make him less angry about his parents being murdered."

"I know. But getting it out when it's all built up like that will still help." Jay nodded to Evie. "She used to circle me, Mal, and Carlos while we trained. She had an eagle eye for sloppy mistakes. Better footwork. Weaknesses we're leaving open. She'd help critique us until we couldn't stand anymore. Fighting had to become second nature so that even when we were dog tired, our muscle memory could make up for where we might lack. Come on, Evie, show Ben that Isle side."

Evie rolled her eyes. "You just want to see me kick Ben's ass."

"It's fun!" Jay glanced at Lonnie. "Evie's like a cat. You'll wanna watch this."

"Hey, I didn't agree to anything," Evie objected. But her gaze automatically slid to where Ben was still fighting the punching bag. Even from this distance, she could see where his left foot needed to slide back a few inches and that his right fist was too low to defend from an attack. He was obviously tired, and thus getting sloppy. Jay was right. Sloppiness in a fight could get you killed.

Evie sighed and dug in her purse for a hair tie. She pulled her hair back into a ponytail before sitting down on the bleacher seats behind her. She laid her purse aside and pulled off her wedge heels so she was barefoot. When she glanced up, Jay was grinning and Lonnie was biting her lip.

"I'll be fine," Evie said, standing.

"It's not you I'm worried about now," Lonnie said.

Both Jay and Evie laughed. "I'll go easy on him, I guess," Evie said. As she strode across to the other side of the gym she heard Jay say "No, no, you want to watch this up close," and Evie glanced over her shoulder to see Jay tugging Lonnie to sit with him at center court.

Evie rolled her eyes at Jay's eagerness. He was treating it like a show.

"Hey, do you want some water?" Evie asked once she was a foot or so away from Ben. She was standing just inside his line of sight.

Ben glanced at her. "No, but thanks." He drove another fist into what would have been a real opponent's stomach.

Evie watched him for a moment, crossed her arms over her chest, and then decided to drop all niceties. Jay was right about Ben's anger, and she could use that to her advantage. "Jay says you're getting sloppy."

"I'm fine. I'm just better with a weapon. Swords and stuff," Ben said in between punches.

Evie shrugged. "You think villains play by the rules? I explained this to you when you came to the Isle with us. The only rule villains follow is there are no rules. They fight hard and dirty. And fighting like this-" She eyed him up and down, making her disapproval obvious. "This will get you killed."

"I can fight hard and dirty," Ben said.

"Oh," Evie said and dropped her hands to her sides. "Ok."

The next instant, Evie plowed into Ben, sending him toppling sideways to the floor. Jay was cackling from his seat nearby on the floor.

"Hey!" Ben said, scrambling to his feet and pushing his sodden bangs out of his eyes. "What was that for?"

"I thought you said you could fight hard and dirty. Weren't you prepared?"

"Not for that!"

"You mean a surprise attack? An ambush? Something that could happen at any given time?" Evie raised an eyebrow, and she ignored Jay's laughter as she watched Ben struggle to come up with answer.

Ben huffed. "Look, I just wasn't prepared. You're not my enemy, so I wasn't expecting an attack from you."

"Ok," Evie said. "Let's pretend I am your enemy. Fight me."

"What? No, you're my friend. I could hurt you."

"That didn't stop you from sparring with Jay and knocking one of his teeth out."

"That's different. That's-"

"Because he's a guy?"

"What? No! I would fight Lonnie, but you, I-"

"Do you think I'm weak?"

Ben cast a nervous glance to where Jay and Lonnie were eagerly listening and watching. He stepped close to her and lowered his voice. "You know why I don't want to fight you."

"Busting my lip open won't stop me from being able to kiss you if that's what you mean," Evie muttered, trying to move her mouth as little as possible. She knew Jay could read lips well. She and Ben hadn't had time to discuss their kiss from the cottage, but Evie knew her assumptions about why Ben wouldn't fight her were correct when his face flushed redder than it already was from the workout.

Ben took a step back and slowly nodded. "Ok. Ok, let's do this."

The resulting sparring match was short, given that Ben's energy was pretty much nonexistent at that point. Evie caught more mistakes in his form that she could count on both hands, which was extremely disheartening. If he had been in a real fight just then, he would have been dead. But maybe a real fight would have given him the adrenaline to succeed. There was no real way to tell, but either way, his sloppiness did not help Evie's fears for his safety in a real fight. She was able to trip him twice, land one blow to his stomach and another to his jaw, and it ended up with him lying on his back on the gym floor from where she had judo flipped him. Jay had whistled and cheered at that.

"Ok, you win," Ben panted.

Evie held out a hand to help him to his feet. "In your defense, you were really tired."

"Yeah, but like you said, that won't matter in a real fight against any villain. They won't care that I'm tired. It just makes it easier for them."

Evie nodded. At least she had made her point. No, maybe it hadn't been fair to spar with Ben when she knew he was so tired. But, she reminded herself, 'fair' was not a word to be found in any villain's vocabulary. Testing him like this now would only help him in a real fight later.

"Well, time for lunch," Jay chirped, jumping to his feet.

Evie laughed and shook her head. "You two go on. I need to grab my shoes and get some water."

As Jay and Lonnie exited the gym, Evie and Ben went into a small side room where a large fridge was stocked with water and energizing snacks. She grabbed two bottles of water out of the fridge before joining Ben at the small table in the center of the room. She passed him one of the bottles.

"Thanks," he murmured.

Evie drank half of her bottle quickly and then frowned at Ben. "I'm sorry for provoking you like that. I just-"

"No, don't apologize," Ben said. He tipped his bottle side to side, watching the water slosh inside; he had almost drained his completely. "A villain would provoke a lot worse than that. I know you were trying to prove that lack of energy and anger make me sloppy. Together, it just made me a mess out there." He gave a dry laugh.

Evie nodded. "I just don't want you to get hurt for some stupid mistake that we have time to work on now during training sessions here. I was only hard on you because I...well, like I said, I don't want you hurt." She dropped her gaze to her own water bottle where she was clutching it between both of her hands. Her cheeks were burning.

"That line about me busting open your lip and kissing you," Ben said after a few quiet moments. "Is that all you think I want?"

"I think your judgment is cloudy," Evie said slowly, thinking over her phrasing carefully. "I want to make sure you know what you want."

"That...what happened back at the cottage...yes, that purely physical stuff I wanted. But I don't think I would have asked that from just anyone."

"I hope not. I don't think Jay's had that much kissing experience." She chanced a glance up at him at her attempt at a joke.

Ben was smirking, making it obvious he was trying not to laugh as he wanted to remain serious. A smile did break through after a moment though, and the tension in the room eased a bit. "Regardless," he said, "I mean, I'm glad it was you. I feel like we got closer during those night time chats and tea times at the palace. I thought, I thought we were helping each other. And maybe I thought you were feeling the same. I was developing feelings for you, but I didn't want to act on them until all of my feelings for Mal had gone. I didn't want you to think you were a rebound, and honestly, I didn't want to think that I was yours from Doug either. So, what happened at the cottage...it was something I wanted to happen eventually, but given the circumstances, well, it just...happened."

Evie nodded. "I was developing feelings too, but didn't say anything for the same reasons."

"I'm sorry I didn't," Ben said.

"Why? We're telling each other now."

"Because..." Ben sighed and dragged a hand through his damp hair. "Because I would have liked to take you on a date. And now, I can't really do that. Enemies everywhere doesn't make for a very romantic evening."

Evie laughed and reached across the table. She entwined their fingers. "Hey, I think we could make the rec room here just as romantic."

"Yeah?" Ben gave her hand a squeeze.

"Yeah. I wouldn't say no to some board games, a movie, and popcorn."

Ben's cheeks flushed, and he nodded. "I'd like that."

"Then it's a date."

* * *

"Come on, come on," Gil muttered, tapping his fingers impatiently on the surface of the desk. He kept glancing at the door, anxious that Ulysses might return at any moment. Uma had left the city about an hour ago to head north to Mulan and Shang's and ambush the hero gathering. But, Gil still had to worry about her equally ruthless twin brother. Ulysses and Gil had been in talks with Uma all morning, getting instructions. Now was the first time Gil had been alone, but Ulysses had only gone to give instructions to his patrol teams. There was no telling when he might return. Five minutes or twenty, there was no way to guess.

The printer suddenly spat out what Gil had been waiting for, and he snatched it up, closed out of the internet browser window, and ran from the room. Uma's computer in the royal study was the only one with internet access, so it had been his only hope.

As Gil sprinted down the corridor and took the steps to the dungeon two at a time, he folded the paper into a square small enough to fit into the palm of his hand. Upon entering the dungeon, he took out the key he had stolen from the drawer in the desk in the office.

"Gil!"

"Shh, shh," Gil said as he inserted the key into the lock of his siblings' cell. He wrenched open the door. "Quietly. Come on." He turned to Fairy Godmother's cell and unlocked her door as well. The woman was huddled against the wall.

He hurried inside and pulled her to her feet.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

"Rescuing you. And you're going to pay me back by getting all my siblings safely out of this city," Gil said in a rush. "Uma just left to go after Ben and Mal up at Mulan and Shang's. Please, take my siblings somewhere safe. I don't care what you do afterwards."

Fairy Godmother stared at him for a moment as if trying to decide if this was a trick.

"Come on!" Gil growled, and Fairy Godmother burst into action.

She swept out of the cell and to the corridor where Gil's siblings had gathered. There were five of them - four girls and one boy. The eldest girl was holding the two year old boy in her arms and looked terrified but determined.

"You're coming with us," she said. "Right?"

"No, but I'll be close behind," Gil said. He pushed the square of paper into the second eldest girl's hand. "That's a map of Auradon in case you get separated from Fairy Godmother. Go with her. She'll get you somewhere safe, and I'll catch up to you later."

"But-"

"Georgia, please, you have to go. We don't have time."

Georgia, the eldest girl, nodded and hurried forward to give him a hug. She was a full two heads shorter than her older brother. "Promise you'll come?"

Gil nodded. "After Ulysses and I have Harry locked up down here, I'll come. I have to know he's detained." He turned to Fairy Godmother. "Your daughter is safe, by the way. She made a call to Doug. She's in Camelot."

Fairy Godmother exhaled in obvious relief. "Thank you."

"Thank me by taking care of them." He nodded to his sisters and little brother.

She nodded.

Gil led the way to the end of the hallway and opened a door. It opened to an alley next to the horse stable. "Be careful." He gave each of his sisters a hug on their way out and dropped a kiss to his brother's head as he whispered them each a quick goodbye. "Georgia, Gwen, Gretchen, Grace, take care of each other. And take care of Gabe. I wish I could help you more. I'll be right behind you."

He shut the door after them before returning to the study upstairs.

* * *

Mal's face was wet from tears by the time the last of the pain subsided. She took deep breaths, her lungs and voice box feeling exhausted from screaming and crying.

"It's ok," Chad said. "Just breathe. Do you think it worked? You just have to nod or something."

Mal slowly opened her eyes and nodded. "The spell worked. I can feel that it did."

"Ok, good. You don't have to try to move anything right now. Just rest if you need to," Chad said. He offered her a glass of water.

She took it and sat up a bit in the pool chair. She had been reclining in it, enjoying the sun and watching Chad swim laps out of the corner of her eye when inspiration had struck a few minutes ago. She knew the words she needed for the spell. Now, it was complete, though painful, and her legs didn't feel like dead weights anymore.

She took a drink of the water and handed the glass back to him. Slowly, she bent her knees to pull her knees up toward her chest. She exhaled shakily. Even that short time without use had made her muscles stiff, and it both hurt and helped to flex them.

"Do you need help?" Chad asked, setting the water on the table beside her where a large umbrella was spread above them to shade their faces from the sun.

Mal shook her head. "I just want to walk around or something." She swung her legs over the side of the chair and moved to stand. Her legs immediately gave out, and she tumbled forward.

Chad caught her and helped her stand upright by leaning on him. "Maybe walking is a few baby steps from now. Why don't you sit on the edge of the pool?"

"How will that help?" Mal asked, shifting against him to try to test her balance and how much weight she could put on her legs. Not much, was the answer. Every time she put a little weight on her feet, the tendons in her ankles felt like they were ripping.

"Doctors use water for physical therapy. You know, to help recover from injuries. It gives you friction to work against while supporting more of your weight than air. It takes the pressure off your joints a bit, I think. Just sit on the edge and practice moving your legs through the water."

Mal swallowed. Sitting on the edge of the pool, and she would be just one slip away from drowning. "Will you be in the pool to help if something goes wrong?"

Chad nodded and smiled. "Of course."

Chad helped her walk over to the edge of the pool, putting most of her weight on his shoulder. He carefully helped lower her to the edge to sit, and Mal slid her feet into the water. It was chilly and made goosebumps appear on her legs, but it was oddly soothing. Maybe, if nothing else, the water would help the tendons in her ankles relax.

She watched him get into the water and dunk his head under before resurfacing. She smiled, enjoying the way the water rolled off his golden hair and bare chest.

"What?" Chad asked, wading over to her to stand beside her knees.

Mal shook her head. "Nothing. I just..." And suddenly, all the questions and vulnerability she had been trying to conceal came rushing out all at once. "How can you expect me to forget the conversation we had at the cottage? You said to forget it happened, but how can I? You confessed feelings for me, and you expect me to just ignore that?"

Chad blinked. "I, well, I just figured, since you don't return those feelings, it's not worth bringing up. I don't want it to affect our friendship."

"I never said..." Mal cut herself off and looked away.

"What?" Chad asked. "You never said you don't have feelings for me? Well, I took your silence-"

"Silence?" Mal snapped. She huffed and made herself calm down before she could work herself up for no reason. She continued more calmly, "You didn't give me a chance to say anything. You ended the conversation and left."

"You could have said something then. You could have stopped me."

"I was too shocked by your confession."

"It's hard to believe I could be attracted to you?"

"Honestly? Yeah." She tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "You're basically the poster child for perfect Auradon prince. You're not supposed to like girls like me. I'm rough and tumble, and you're all...I dunno, you're all garden tea parties and sparkling backyard pools and sports scholarships to top colleges type."

Chad laughed. "Isn't that how you would have described Ben before you came to Auradon too?"

"Yeah, but when I got here, he had already made the rebellious decision to bring us over from the Isle. You weren't exactly over the moon about having us here."

Chad nodded. "I know. But listen, regardless of what you believe about how I should or should not feel based on me being some 'poster child for perfect Auradon prince,' I do like you. A lot. And if you're bringing this up, I'm guessing you have a reason?"

Mal swallowed and looked down at her feet in the water. "I don't know. I guess I'm just trying to make sense of it. All of it."

"All of it?"

"Like you rescuing me from the Isle. And checking up on me and being helpful. And then carrying me places when I couldn't walk. I'm trying to make sense of the feelings I have about all of that stuff." She glanced up at him. "I'm trying to make sense of how I feel about you."

"Can I help with that at all?"

Mal smiled and shook her head. "I think I just need some time to figure it out. Is that ok?"

"Yeah," Chad said. "Hey, will you be ok here if I swim a few laps?"

Mal nodded. "Yeah, but can I ask you something?" At his nod, she continued in a rush. "Since I don't know how to swim, there's some part of me that is worried that I'll die by Uma pushing me into a moat or something stupid, and that's not really how I want to go. So, will you teach me?"

Chad laughed and nodded. "Yeah, sure, ok. I can do that. But, why are you so worried about that?"

"Because Uma knows I can't swim, and she can transfigure into that octopus hybrid thing. It just seems to me that if I have a weakness that big that I can fix, now is the time to do it. If it comes down to a one-on-one face-off with Uma, I'm not going to make it easy for her by leaving that weakness in my defense. Plus, have you seen how many moats you guys have around here? You can't build a castle without one. It's not exactly farfetched that Uma could push me into one."

"Fair point. Alright, so, want to get started?"

* * *

Harry started the sleek sports cars and relaxed against the seat. He loved the way the engine purred. And it had been so easy to get the man to hand over the keys to it once Harry had disfigured his family with his poison touch. Now, of course, like several other families on the route Harry had taken from the cottage to the capital city, they were all dead.

Maybe some would say Harry had been enjoying experimenting with his newfound powers too much. But, he couldn't help it. He was fascinated by what he could do. He could torture and kill with just a few touches. And not every time was the same. Different people's skin and bodies reacted differently to his touch. One girl had sprouted boils. Another had melted like Dr. Facilier. One man had developed a rash that sent him into seizures. Not every touch was fatal, but what Harry couldn't finish with his touch, he ended with his sword.

Now, he was just outside the boundary to Auradon City. And he couldn't wait to show Uma what an asset he would be to torturing all the heroes they wanted.


	12. Chapter 12

"Why are we waiting out here again, boss?"

Uma rolled her eyes. If they could have, they would have rolled right out of her skull. That was the third time Jason had asked something like that. As if she hadn't explained it thoroughly on the car ride to Mulan and Shang's mansion.

"Because," she said through gritted teeth, her eyes still trained on the mansion beyond the row of hedges they were currently hidden behind. "We aren't confronting them. There's no need to get our hands dirty when we have this." She shook Mal's spell book at him.

She knew bringing Harold and Jason Badun, Horace and Jasper's sons respectively, had not been the brightest idea. But, she had needed some muscle to back her up in case she found herself with more than she could handle. And she couldn't spare the good crew members that needed to be on patrol in Auradon City. So, Harold and Jason had been the next best thing, which, she supposed, was not saying much since neither of them were the best at anything.

Harold ducked back through the hedge, panting. "Ok, didn't see anybody outside. Lots of cars in the driveway though, so we've got plenty of them inside."

"Good," Uma said nodding. She shifted from crouching to sit cross-legged on the ground and opened to one of the dog-eared pages of the spell book. She had found the perfect spell for the job of eliminating Ben and Mal and their friends on the way north while Harold had driven and Jason kept the radio tuned to some awful country music station.

"So, what's this spell, Uma?" Harold asked, leaning over her shoulder to try to read it.

She frowned at him and motioned for him to sit. "As funny as it would be, don't stay standing. We're about to start an earthquake."

Harold and Jason exchanged a quick glance and immediately sat. They were just as dumb as their fathers, but they had enough common sense to sit when they heard Uma's words.

"And why didn't we bring the wand again?" Jason asked.

Uma huffed. "Because if we got ambushed, I didn't want it to fall into enemy hands. And this spell isn't large enough that it requires the wand to work. Now, hush."

Uma read the spell quietly to herself, not saying the words aloud just yet. She wanted to make sure she could form her mouth around the syllables correctly first. She wasn't sure, but if she stumbled over the words or mispronounced something, it might go wrong. With a spell this large, that wasn't something she wanted to risk.

She glanced up to peer through the gap in the hedges. From here on top of a small hill, she could see the whole of the Chinese-style mansion. It definitely did not look like it was built to withstand an earthquake. Good; it would make this all easier to bury them alive.

"What about the army from Camelot? It doesn't look like they're here yet," Harold said, stretching his neck to see through the branches beside him.

Uma rolled her eyes. "I can see that. We'll head further along the border after this. I have a plan in store for them as well. Now, quiet. I'm concentrating."

Uma read over the spell another two times before exhaling slowly. "Ok," she muttered. And she read the spell out loud this time, making her voice strong and clear to enunciate each syllable carefully.

As soon as she finished reading, the ground beneath them gave a small tremor. It was nothing compared to what was happening in the valley below though. The ground around and beneath the mansion had begun to shake violently. The sliver of the driveway that Uma could see from this position had already split into several large chunks of asphalt. The mansion was already losing tiles from its roof, and a minute later, the middle caved in.

Uma grinned, watching as over several minutes, the rustic mansion tumbled down into nothing but rubble. She said the stop command, and the earthquake subsided.

A minute later, there was already sirens and shouts of panic coming from the town as people and emergency vehicles rushed up the main street to the wreckage. The town hadn't been affected. Just the mansion. It was destroyed, and hopefully, that meant Ben, Mal, and most of their other allies and friends were gone as well.

Uma got to her feet and motioned for Harold and Jason to follow her back to the car. Next stop: Camelot.

* * *

The first tremors scattered the Monopoly pieces in every direction. Evie and Ben had been playing the Heroes and Princesses edition, which meant their Snow White and Prince Adam figures were now downed among dice and multiple cottages and palaces in place of the usual houses and hotels.

"What's happening?" Evie asked, propping herself up on her elbows. Sure, there had been butterflies in her stomach from the thought of this being her first official date with Ben, but now those butterflies seemed to have grown into bears with the tremors that now shook the house.

"Earthquake," Ben said, his eyes wide. And then he seemed to snap to his senses, and he jumped to his feet. "Come on!"

He hauled Evie to her feet, and they ran from the room. Luckily, the rec room where they had been having their afternoon date was just off the main foyer.

Then another tremor hit, and this time the shaking was sustained and made the floor jolt. Evie screamed and toppled into Ben. They landed heavily on the floor.

"Get through that door!" Shang yelled, racing down the stairs. "NOW! And stay low!"

Evie looked to where he was pointing. A door just beside the staircase was visible. But why not the front door? It was right there. But, as Evie twisted to look toward the front door, she saw that it had already buckled under the combination of pressure and the shaking. There would be no budging it.

She followed Ben on her hands and knees to the door, trying not to be sick as the floor tried to throw her off balance with each inch forward. She knew she shouldn't have eaten those peppers with her pizza for lunch.

As they reached the door, Shang collapsed against it when the shaking threw him to the side. He grunted, straightened, and wrenched open the door.

"Down the stairs and immediately head out," he commanded as the chandelier rattled dangerously overhead.

"What? We-" Evie began.

"It's a tunnel system. Run down the passage, and you'll be safe. It won't cave in. It's enchanted, but the house isn't. Now, go!"

Evie followed Ben to the top of the stairs, but as he started down it, she pulled him back. "What about the others?" But just then, she heard shouts behind them and looked over her shoulder.

Audrey and Lonnie were sprinting toward them. From another hallway came Mulan, Doug, and Jay. Before Evie had time to move, Audrey was cramming past her. Well, more like stumbling into her, and Evie had to grab Audrey's arm to keep the girl from tumbling down the steps.

"Go!" Shang barked.

Evie pressed herself to the stone wall of the staircase, which led into semi-darkness. Audrey followed Ben down the stairs.

"Evie!" Ben called from somewhere below.

"Coming! I'm going to help them!" Evie called back.

Jay's weight almost sent her down the stairs though. And the violent shaking was making her want to throw up. But, she grabbed the handrail and stayed standing, wanting to make sure all her friends made it to safety.

Doug was next, and Evie helped him stay upright even though waves of sadness spread through her as she did so. No, she told herself. She had to get past that. She wanted to be with Ben even though those feelings for Doug lingered. And, to her relief, when she reminded herself of Ben, the sadness suddenly felt much more just like nerves in general.

The mansion gave another horrible shake, and a tinkling and a snap made Evie look up just as Lonnie collided with her. Both girls looked back to the foyer. And as if in slow motion, the center of the roof, including the chandelier, came crashing down right on top of Mulan.

Lonnie screamed, and suddenly Evie was holding onto her friend tightly as the brunette struggled to rush to her mother.

Shang left the door to run to Mulan. He tried to shift some of the rubble that had buried Mulan, but Evie could see what Shang must have too. There was blood on most of those shards of pretty crystal from the chandelier. It made him cry out and dig through the wreckage faster.

"DAD!" Lonnie screamed as another shake mast the rest of the roof cave in.

Evie pulled Lonnie back from the door as a large chunk of tiled roof fell in front of the doorway, effectively sealing them in. The last thing Evie saw before more of the roof blocked their sight completely was Shang being buried in a slew of debris and glass from the front windows.

And then Evie and Lonnie were down the stairs, Evie half-supporting and half-dragging the other girl along to join the others. Evie just shook her head when Ben began to ask about Mulan and Shang, and he understood.

In mere seconds, their group of six was stumbling through a dimly lit tunnel beyond a steel door. The further they went, the less severe the shaking became and the more Lonnie cried.

* * *

Mal and Chad were almost to the city limits of the town Mulan and Shang governed when it happened. They didn't feel the tremors, but they saw the mansion fall.

"Oh my-" The words got stuck in Mal's throat. Her friends were inside there.

"What the hell?" Chad muttered, stopping the car as the last of the mansion fell in on itself.

"No, don't stop!" Mal said. "Go! We have to get there and help! Maybe they're ok. Maybe they're ok." She kept repeating that to herself mentally even after she had ceased to say it aloud. But, she knew it was not ok. Because earthquakes did not target buildings and people. The whole town should have fallen from that quake, but it was isolated. They hadn't felt any tremors in the car.

So, Mal knew. She knew that earthquake had been done on purpose by magic. Which had to mean Uma was near. But, right now, that wasn't her concern. All of her thoughts were centered on her friends and the gut-wrenching worry that they may all now be dead.

* * *

"So, what's the plan this time?" Jason asked, leaning through the middle of the front seats to look at Uma.

Uma nudged him back into his seat in the back and huffed. "Just get out. I'll explain in a minute."

Uma got out of the car where Harold had parked them on a road behind a strip of trees that ran parallel to the Camelot-Auradon border. They had bypassed the first gate so that no one would see them when they got out to perform the spell.

Uma led the way through the trees, the spell book clutched tightly in her hands. She stopped at the edge of the trees where she could see the border fence through some low-hanging branches.

She opened to another dog-eared page of the book. "Have either of you boys ever heard of Excalibur?"

"Isn't that some magic sword?" Harold asked.

"Yes. It's King Arthur's sword to be exact. It chose him as king when he pulled it out of some rock or something."

"Sounds stupid," Jason said.

"Exceedingly so," Uma grumbled. "Anyway. When the holder of Excalibur dies, the sword's allegiance is back up for grabs. And there's a spell in here that will let me kill Arthur."

Harold frowned. "Why not just use that spell for Mal then?"

"Because, there are a couple rules that come with it. It has some fine print here." She pointed at the bottom of the page. "It can only be used once per wielder. So, I can only use it once ever in my life. And, it can only be used on someone you have never met but know their name. So, it fits exactly to my relation to Arthur. I don't know him, but I know of him. Understand?"

"Uh, yeah."

Uma didn't care that it seemed like he didn't understand. She knew what she was doing. And she had practiced the spell and the one she would use immediately afterward already on the way there.

She read the spell, emphasizing Arthur's name when the spell said to insert it. Immediately after finishing the spell, she flipped to the third dog-eared page toward the back of the spell book.

"Now what?" Jason asked.

"We get ourselves an army, and I get the sword brought to me on a silver platter," Uma explained.

"What?" Harold asked.

"I'm putting the entire Camelot army in a trance. Any man trained in weaponry will fall under this spell and immediately become my mindless slaves. I'll have them bring me the sword as they march south to Auradon City to join me, and they'll take out any resistance along the way. My reign will be complete. Both Auradon and Camelot at my command."

"Whoa," Jason and Harold breathed.

Uma grinned. It was not hard to impress either boy, but she was glad they were impressed nonetheless. She read the spell aloud and then snapped the book shut. "It's done. Come on, let's get back to the palace to see if Harry's arrived yet."

* * *

Jane bit into her hamburger while Merlin answered his cell phone. They were in his truck, headed for Mulan and Shang's mansion. They had just gotten through the border gate a few miles ago and had just stopped for food at a drive thru. How life was carrying on normally in spite of the villain invasion was beyond Jane, but she supposed some things had to keep going on somehow or else the entire country would fall apart. So, the citizens were trying to keep things as normal as possible, and that meant serving low quality hamburgers at drive thrus.

"Hello?" Merlin said through a mouthful of lettuce, tomato, and burger.

"Merlin! Thank heavens! I don't know what to do!" Guinevere said, her voice echoing through the speakers of the truck. But maybe her voice also sounded distorted because she was sobbing.

"Guinevere, what's wrong?" Merlin said, nearly choking on his food to answer her.

"Arthur. He's, he's…we think he had a heart attack or stroke. He's, Merlin, he's d-dead!"

Jane blinked, and now it was she who nearly choked on her burger. She coughed and took a drink of her tea, deciding it was best to not interfere and just listen to the call.

"He…oh my gosh," Merlin said, immediately going pale. "I, what?" He seemed at a loss for words.

"There was this bluish smoke that whirled around him, and he just dropped to the floor. He died instantly." The queen broke down into fresh sobs. "Do you think it was-"

"Magic? Yes. That definitely sounds like the Heart Stiller Curse." Merlin slammed his palm against the steering wheel. "Guinevere, you must bring me Excalibur immediately. Whoever killed him is likely after the sword."

"They are," Guinevere wailed. "That's what else I have to tell you. The knights. The army. They've all gone into some sort of trance. I've locked myself in the parlor. The maids have locked all ways into the castle, but there's still some inside. They want the sword. They're not themselves."

"Damn." Merlin clenched his jaw. "Guinevere, listen, carefully."

"Wait." The other end of the line went quiet for a moment. And then, the queen came back on in a rush. "Oh, my God, Merlin. They're trying to break down the door! What do I do?"

"Do you have the sword?" Merlin shouted. "Do you have Excalibur?!"

"Yes!"

"Is there a fire?"

"What? What did you say? Oh, my God. It's Lancelot and Gwaine." She sobbed. "They're going to kill me, Merlin! They'll take the sword! He was their king! He was their friend! Merlin!"

"GUINEVERE!"

Jane jumped when Merlin roared at the queen.

"IS THERE A FIRE?"

"Yes! Yes, there is! Why?"

"Throw the sword in the fire!"

"What?"

"Just do it! Put Excalibur in the flames!" The sound of shattering wood came over the truck's speakers. "NOW!"

"It's done! It's-"

The queen gasped, and the line went dead a second later.

Jane's heart was hammering against her ribs, and she watched in silence as Merlin dropped his forehead against the steering wheel and began to sob. She didn't know what to say or do. Father or not, Jane had never seen a large tattooed man cry like that. But, she guessed, when the boy you grew up with that you had seen become king suddenly died, it was something you couldn't help crying over.

"What," Jane began, her voice hoarse. "What will happen to the sword? The army?"

"Excalibur will use the flames as a catalyst for its magic and transport itself. It will imbed itself in a stone once again to await another Arthur."

"Arthur had no heirs?" Jane asked.

Merlin lifted his head and shook it. "No. So, here's to another century probably of waiting for another Once and Future King." He swallowed with difficulty and looked away. "And the army, well, we either kill the spell caster or we find Excalibur's new wielder. Once Excalibur's allegiance is claimed again, the spell will break."

Jane inhaled shakily. "So, kill Uma, probably." Who else would the caster have been? "Or get someone to draw the sword?"

"Yes." He started the truck and shifted into drive. "Come on. Let's just get to your friends. It isn't safe here. The army will probably head this way to cross the border within a few hours."

"You can't undo the spell on the army?" Jane asked, trying to comprehend what the implications of this information was. They had no army anymore. Well, it was worse than that. Uma had just gained an army they had been preparing. They were essentially screwed now.

"No. Not every spell has a counter spell. Something like that must be undone by the caster or broken by their death. Or, yeah, the sword."

Jane sighed and took a big bite of her burger as they pulled back out onto the road. She had lost her appetite, but she also didn't want to talk. So, she chewed.

* * *

"It's done! It's-"

Guinevere gasped as a sword sunk through her abdomen. She stared at her murderer. Lancelot. One of her husband's best friends and most trusted knights.

His eyes were blank and unfocused. The pupils had dilated so only a sliver of iris was visible. Silently, he grabbed the phone from her hand and ended the call.

"Lanc…elot," Guinevere breathed. Tilting her head just slightly, she could see Excalibur gleaming among the flames in the hearth to her right. Its blade sparkled like diamonds in the sun. A second passed, and the sword gave one last glint as it disappeared. The second after that, Guinevere's eyes closed for the last time as Lancelot withdrew his sword from her stomach. Her lifeless body sagged to the ground, her blood staining the carpet crimson.


	13. Chapter 13

In the hours following the collapse of Mulan and Shang's mansion, Mal and Chad assisted the search crews in digging through the rubble for both bodies and survivors. Eventually, Jane and Merlin arrived to the scene of the devastation as well. After exchanging information about the earthquake, Arthur's death, and the loss of the Camelot army to a trance, all four felt deflated.

The discovery of both Mulan's and Shang's lifeless bodies did nothing to lift their spirits. The only comfort available was the lack of the bodies of their six other friends.

"I guess they got out," Jane mumbled, dragging the back of her hand across her forehead to wipe some of the sweat away.

"Yeah," Mal said quietly. "But, where would they go?"

"Do you think Uma kidnapped them?"

Mal shook her head. "Doubt it. She would have had to bring a sizable party with her to take all six of them. That would require a bus or something to get them all back, and we didn't see anything like that pass us on the road into town."

Jane sighed and looked across the rubble heap to see Merlin and Chad chatting near where they had found Lonnie's parents.

"Carlos went to Roger and Anita's house. Maybe they went there. Either way, we could go there. Maybe by then, the others will be back on the grid." She meant that they had tried calling the cell phones of Doug, Audrey, Ben, and Lonnie with no success. They all went straight to voicemail as if they had no service or were simply turned off. The latter seemed unlikely given their need to communicate with each other especially now.

Mal made a soft sound of agreement and wiped at her own face. There was slime and dirt all over her from the combination of dust from the rubble mixing with her sweat. She was watching Chad and Merlin now as well as the pair approached the place where she and Jane stood at the outskirts of the rubble site.

"They might have escaped underground," Merlin said once they had reached the girls. "There looks to be a passage leading underground. I thought it was just the basement, but one of the workers I spoke with said that when the mansion was originally built, he was one of the few that worked on an underground tunnel passage."

Jane let out a sigh of relief. "Let's hope that's what happened. It seems most likely. Did he say where the tunnel lets out?"

"Somewhere in Sherwood Forest."

Jane's eyes lit up, and she explained what she had suggested to Mal – that they should go to Roger and Anita's to meet up with Carlos. Sherwood Forest backed up to the Dalmatian manor's estate.

Merlin nodded. "Perhaps, that would be the best plan. Go there and wait for them to leave the tunnel." He ran a hand through his hair by his temple. "I still need to locate Excalibur's new whereabouts. It may be useless, but we should try all of you kids with the sword."

Chad raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Because rightful rulers have a strange habit of emerging during times of great strife. And typically, historically speaking I mean, those chosen by important weapons or prophecies are adolescents. It would not surprise me if one of you was the next wielder of Excalibur. At least, it would help tremendously if one of you was. We could fix the problem with Camelot's army and give them back a king or queen."

"You mean whoever pulls Excalibur from its new stone this time will inherit the throne of Camelot as well?" Mal asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes. The people of Camelot built their nation around following whoever was chosen by that sword because it was connected to a powerful prophecy that promised prosperity under the wielder's rule. They will accept the next controller of Excalibur without question."

"What if it's a villain?" Jane asked with a hesitant glance toward Mal. "Not meaning you guys that chose good or the other villain kids that may be ok. But, like, what if it's Uma or one of her followers?"

Merlin shook his head. "Excalibur only chooses the pure of heart to wield it, so that is one thing we don't have concern ourselves with. But, it really is imperative to find the new wielder as soon as possible for both Camelot's and Auradon's sake. As long as Camelot's army remains under Uma's control, she can effectively rule both nations."

"So, how do you expect to find it for anyone to try pulling it out?" Chad asked.

"The sword can be located with a potion that I can make once we're at Roger and Anita's. It may take some time though since I may have to scour the forest for some of the ingredients."

"Well, it sounds like Roger and Anita's is definitely the place to be either way," Mal said. "We can follow you in the van."

* * *

In the same hours that had seen the sorting through of the mansion rubble, there had been more death. Harry had arrived at the palace in Auradon where Gil and Ulysses had been waiting to detain him.

Gil had covered every inch of his skin with some type of cloth so that only his face was visible. Despite his warnings, Ulysses did not listen to this same sense. When Harry arrived and the scuffle ensued, Harry had grabbed Ulysses's exposed wrist just as they shoved the pirate boy into a cell and locked it.

Writhing in pain while Harry grinned from his place behind bars, Ulysses had begged Gil to take the gun from his waist and put an end to his misery. Gil had obliged, shooting Ulysses once between the eyes before turning to Harry and emptying the other five shots into his chest. Gil had stood there and watched the blood drain from Harry's wounds while the light disappeared from his eyes. The whole time, Harry had still laughed, seemingly drunk with his power.

Satisfied that two of the most powerful villain kids were taken out by his own hand, Gil left the palace. No doubt that Uma would return soon, and she would not be in the mood to listen to Gil's reasoning for the deaths when she discovered both her brother's and lover's lifeless bodies in the dungeon.

Gil felt no remorse for his part in Ulysses's and Harry's deaths. He had been thinking of a way to end Harry ever since Uma left. Ulysses had been the main problem since Ulysses would have surely told Uma who killed Harry. But, that had taken care of itself. Gil had not wanted to kill Ulysses, but the boy's skin had been melting off from Harry's touch anyway. And Harry had already been dead once. It seemed right to put him back how he was meant to be. There would be no Dr. Facilier to revive him this time, and the course of nature would be back to normal.

Despite this, Gil's hands were still shaking from the adrenaline of the scuffle as he drove toward Roger and Anita's house. He wasn't entirely sure who they were. Fairy Godmother's message that she had gotten to him by an enchanted paper airplane just an hour ago had been vague. In the message, she had explained that she had taken his siblings to the nearest safe house she could think of – a Dalmatian manor not far past the city limits. He guessed these people were Cruella's old adversaries, which at least meant the place should be free from ominous magic.

Luckily, Fairy Godmother had also included the address of the manor, which made the drive much easier on Gil. The car he had stolen had a built-in GPS. He had watched Harry drive to the cottage, so he sort of knew what he was doing. The first few miles were rough though as he got a feel for the controls of the car firsthand.

"In five hundred feet, the destination is on your right," said the sweet mechanical tone of the GPS.

Gil turned it off and pulled into the driveway where he found his way barred by five full-grown Dalmatians, all growling at the car. He immediately pressed on the brake pedal and frowned. He didn't have a phone or the number to the house, so how was he supposed to tell Fairy Godmother he was there?

He looked around, wondering if there was a call-box system or something. He had heard of some fancy houses in Auradon having security systems like that. But all he could see was two massive stone Dalmatian statues that flanked either side of the driveway.

One of them had a gleaming sword with a golden hilt sticking out of its back.

He looked back to the driveway and exhaled as he saw a man and Fairy Godmother walking toward him. It seemed they had been hiding behind one of the trees that bordered the path of the driveway.

"Gil!" Fairy Godmother said once Roger had called off the dogs and Gil had felt it was safe to roll down the car window. "You made it."

"Yeah," Gil said. "Is everybody ok?"

Fairy Godmother nodded. "Yes, and Carlos is also here. Just pull the car up in front of the house and we'll go from there. You can see your sisters and brother in a few minutes."

Gil smiled, the tension in his chest easing a bit. "Good. Thank you." As she turned to walk away so he could drive ahead, he called her back. "Wait, um, Fairy Godmother?"

"Yes?"

"Is there supposed to be a sword in that statue?"


	14. Chapter 14

Uma had screamed herself hoarse by the time she finally collapsed into the chair behind the desk. Upon her return to the palace, she had sent Harold and Jason to check on Harry in the dungeon while she located her brother and Gil. But, she could have never prepared herself for the grave news they reported back to her.

Harry was dead. Again. Her brother was dead too, with most of one of his arms melted off and a gunshot to the head. Gil was nowhere to be found, and neither were any of the prisoners she had taken for leverage. She had nothing. Nothing! If she ever got her hands on Gil, she would strangle him. This was the ultimate sign of his betrayal. She had no solid proof he had shot Harry, and from the looks of it, her brother's death had been a mercy killing. But that didn't change the fact he had let her prisoners go and ran away with them.

She sighed and buried her face in her hands. She had spent the last hour or so sobbing and throwing anything and everything breakable in the study. Harold and Jason were nowhere around, having taken her mood to be a sign to book it to the other side of the city most likely. She couldn't blame them. She wanted to hurt something. She wanted to punish someone for this pain she was feeling now.

* * *

Jane was incredibly relieved to reach Roger and Anita's manor the following morning. She had spent several hours sitting stiffly in the truck beside her father, unsure what to say or do. It seemed like there was nothing she could even think of to try to console Merlin. All he did was keep his eyes on the road ahead. Occasionally, she would look over and see silent tears running down his face.

When they stopped for food before dawn, Jane switched to riding in the van with Mal and Chad. She figured maybe it was best to give her father some time alone. She didn't know him well enough to say anything to comfort him. Even if she did, she wasn't sure it would help.

"You said Carlos is here?" Mal asked as they neared the driveway.

Jane nodded. She was sitting in the front bench seat so that Mal sat between her and Chad. "He was injured in the fight with his parents, but he's said he's fine."

Mal rolled her eyes. "Well, we'll be the judge of that." She laughed, but immediately gasped as Chad slammed on the brakes and threw her and Jane forward. "What the-"

Chad huffed and nodded to Merlin's truck in front of them. He had stopped at the edge of the driveway suddenly, causing Chad to brake just as quickly to avoid rear ending him.

"Look!" Merlin shouted out his window after he had rolled it down. He pointed to one of the large statues by the driveway.

Jane leaned forward to see around Mal and gasped. "Is that…"

"Excalibur!" Merlin called. "Hurry, let's get inside to talk!"

Within minutes, the four of them were in the foyer of the manor. Anita was offering them a selection of tea, lemonade, or water while Roger hovered nearby, listening to Merlin.

"Excalibur is prophetic," Merlin was saying. "It appears exactly where it needs to be, positioning itself in a location for the next heir. I just assumed it would be in a forest or lake like last time."

"Those are two very different locations," Mal said. "I thought it's only had one owner."

Merlin waved a hand dismissively. "It's a long story. But, I just thought Excalibur was drawn to nature. I never thought…" He shook his head, laughing, and Jane was glad to see him smile for the first time since the news of Arthur's death. "A Dalmatian statue of all things. It must be meant for one of you kids after all."

"And who do you think it's for then?" came a voice from the doorway to the parlor.

Jane looked over and gasped. She immediately ran into her mother's arms, tears springing to her eyes as she did so. "Mom!"

"Hello, Jo," Merlin said softly. Her stared at her like she was an entrancing jewel of great beauty that he didn't want to let out of his sight.

Mal huffed. "Look, reunions are great, but can we focus? We have an army to un-enchant, and we need the owner of Excalibur to do that."

"Right," Merlin said and tore his eyes away from Fairy Godmother finally. "We will try everyone in this house with the sword. It will not budge from the stone for anyone but the rightful heir. We'll start with you kids, then the adults, and hopefully by then, the other six will have emerged from the tunnel."

Several heads around the foyer bobbed in silent agreement. Jane had called ahead to inform the party at the manor of the situations that had arisen in the past few days.

"Where's Carlos?" Jane asked, pulling away from her mother a bit to look at her face.

"Upstairs," she answered as she released her daughter.

Jane kissed her cheek and then took off up the stairs that were positioned behind Roger.

Mal crossed her arms over her chest once Jane had disappeared. "And where's Gil? I'd like to speak with him. What's this about Harry being revived by Facilier?"

Fairy Godmother shook her head. "I'm sure he will explain, but that situation has already been resolved again. But, if you'd like to speak with him, he's in the back field with his siblings playing with the dogs."

* * *

With a final heave, the trapdoor opened, and Ben was able to push it back over his head. It fell back against the forest floor with a muted thud. Ben rolled his shoulder, attempting to work out the pain from having rammed it against the trapdoor repeatedly for the last few moments. He climbed the last few steps and blinked against the bright daylight of the morning sun filtering through the trees. Turning back to the opening in the ground, he began helping up his friends one by one.

"Where are we?" Evie asked, collapsing against the grass and closing her eyes against the light.

Audrey tapped on her phone. "GPS says the edge of Sherwood Forest."

Audrey's phone was the only one still with enough battery life to function. The other three cell phones they had had were dead. The passageway had been dark, and they had used the flashlights on their phones one by one to light their way. They had chosen to keep Audrey's phone untouched so they could make a call once back above ground, so they had been forced to traverse the last few hours of the journey in darkness by holding hands and feeling along the walls with their shoulders.

"I have a signal!" Audrey chirped after a few moments of walking around.

"Good," Lonnie said from where she lay in the grass next to Evie. "Call Jane."

The call to Jane was put on speaker phone, and initially started happy. Jane was so relieved and excited to hear from them. But, the conversation quickly turned dark as she explained that Lonnie's parents had been confirmed dead, Uma had killed Arthur, and the Camelot army was entranced. When she got to the part about Excalibur appearing at Roger and Anita's house and Merlin's plans, the group crowded around the phone all looked to Ben.

"What?" he said.

"Well, you're the most likely to pull the sword," Doug said.

"Why?"

Doug shrugged. "You're already a king. You're brave and a natural leader. Why wouldn't it pick you?"

Jane cut in before Ben could respond. "Listen, just get here soon. You shouldn't be too far from what Audrey said about your coordinates. The sooner we find out if one of us is the heir to Camelot, the sooner we get the upper hand on Uma."

"Right," Ben said with a nod to the phone. "We'll be there."

* * *

It took over an hour for the group of six to pick their way through the forest and the field of Dalmatians. The dogs kept wanting to be petted and repeatedly jumped up on their legs for head scratches.

When they finally reached the manor, Evie hugged Mal in a tight embrace and neither girl let go for several long moments.

The tension Mal had been feeling immediately eased. Her friends were back. They were all together finally.

But, the reunion and chatting didn't last long as Merlin ushered them all outside and down the driveway to the dog statue with Excalibur in its back.

"Sorry, but we need to know if someone here is the heir to Excalibur and the kingdom of Camelot immediately. If not, we need a new plan within the hour," Merlin explained. "No doubt that the Camelot army has already crossed the border and is searching for the sword on their way to Uma in the capital."

Several people nodded.

"Ok, so who's up first?" Merlin asked, surveying the teens surrounding him. Gil's siblings, Fairy Godmother, Roger, and Anita all stood back from the group since Merlin had wanted the adolescents to be the first ones to try drawing the sword.

Several of the group looked at Ben, and the young king sighed. "I guess I'll get my turn over with," he said and moved to hoist himself up onto the stone pedestal where the carved Dalmatian sat.

* * *


	15. Chapter 15

It was Lonnie.

She had elected to be one of the last to try pulling Excalibur from its stone sheath. Whereas all her friends before her had been unsuccessful, some turning red as they strained at the effort of budging the sword, it had lifted like a feather for her.

Excalibur felt like a firm handshake. A comrade that both comforted and encouraged her. What deepening sorrow Lonnie had felt growing ever more severe in her since her parents' death now eased. It was as if Excalibur were sharing the load with her, helping her as a partner.

The instant the blade had lifted from the statue, it glowed a warm gold color. The sheen raced from the tip of the blade to the hilt and up her arm. It warmed her fingers and continued until every inch of her shone with a soft gold halo.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she exhaled, the glow faded, and she lowered Excalibur to her side.

Merlin clasped his hands together, grinning. "A perfect fit. You are Camelot's new queen."

* * *

A few hours later found Mal walking out of the bathroom that attached to the room Roger and Anita had given her to stay in. There were enough rooms in the manor that they each got their own room with a conjoining bathroom. Mal's bathroom, for example, connected to Evie's room next door.

Lonnie and Merlin had left shortly after Excalibur had claimed her as its new owner. With the spell over the army now broken, Merlin guessed the army and knights would be confused and disoriented. So, they had left to intercept them quickly. They needed to know the state of their beloved Camelot's monarchy, what had happened to their king and queen, and what the new plan was.

Mal ruffled her hair with a fluffy towel, trying to soak up as much of the moisture from her shower as possible. She hated it when the water ran down her back from too damp hair.

"Do you think they've gotten to the army yet?"

Mal jumped, and her gaze snapped to her bed which she had been headed past to get clothes from her duffel. "Chad! What the…" She immediately moved the towel to clutch it to her chest. Luckily, she had put on underwear and a bra in the bathroom. And she normally didn't have a problem with her body being exposed like this. She certainly hadn't when undressing in front of Gil on the Isle. But this was different! This was…there was…

"What?" Chad asked, looking up from a map of Auradon City that he had spread across the bed. "I wasn't looking. Well, I mean, I am now. But, yeah."

Mal huffed and used one hand to sweep her damp tangled hair over her shoulder while the other held the towel over her chest. "What are you doing in here is the 'what'?"

"While you were in the shower, Ben printed off these maps of the city for all of us. Took a lot of paper and I had to help tape them together, but anyways." Chad shifted the map, which easily took up half of the bed. "While Merlin and Lonnie are gone, we're each supposed to analyze all possible routes in and out of the palace. We're supposed to meet back up when Merlin and Lonnie get back to discuss the best, or most probable, routes to get us to Uma quickest and safest."

"Ok. That still doesn't answer why you're in here on my bed," Mal said. Not that she was complaining all too much. There was something she liked about how he was lying on her bed, his hand propping his head up where he lay on his side while his golden hair fell into his eyes every time he bent his head to look at the lower corner of the map.

"Printer ran out of ink, so I just thought we'd share this map," Chad explained. "In my defense, I didn't know you'd be in the shower."

"Yeah, but you heard the water running when you came in here, didn't you?" Mal asked and walked the last few feet to her duffel that she had set on the desk.

"Yeah. I did."

Mal rolled her eyes and draped the towel over the back of the chair at the desk. She didn't know why she was grilling him on his reason for being there. It didn't bother her that much. But, well, what if she hadn't been wearing anything when she walked out? Her cheeks flushed at the thought, and she hurriedly pulled on her denim shorts and a plain t-shirt.

She pulled the towel back into her hands and turned back around to see Chad tracing his finger along an alleyway that ran behind the stables by the palace. "Um, well, anyway, thanks for the swimming lesson today."

"No problem," Chad said, smiling even as he didn't lift his focus from the map.

Mal began squeezing more water from her hair with the towel. That was why she had been in the shower for so long while the boys apparently made the enlarged maps. She enjoyed knowing that the water she was swimming in was clean, but the chlorine left her hair feeling and smelling strange. Chad had graciously explained what chlorine was after Mal had swallowed a large quantity of pool water from the in-ground pool Roger and Anita had attached to their porch in the back.

So far, Mal had had only two swim lessons. One at the palace in Charmington when she had first asked Chad to teach her. And the second just an hour ago. She was still struggling, but at least she was no longer flailing around like she had that day she had tried to save Ben at the Enchanted Lake. Now, she was able to float on her back and take a few strokes.

Satisfied once her hair was no longer in danger of dripping water down the back of her shirt, Mal retuned the towel to the bathroom to hang-dry. She grabbed a hairbrush and sat on the side of the bed opposite Chad so that the map was between them.

"Do we know if any of the streets are blocked?" Mal asked, scanning the map quickly as she separated a chunk of her hair and pulled it over her shoulder to begin brushing out the tangles.

"No," Chad said with a sigh. "But, if we have that army with us, we should have the manpower to move most debris out of the way if we run into anything. The only problem is it may slow us down enough to give Uma warning."

Mal nodded and gasped when the hairbrush caught at a thick tangle in her hair. She huffed and dropped the hairbrush beside her so she could begin weaving her fingers through the knot to tear it apart.

"Don't do that!" Chad said, having glanced up at her sound of discomfort. He pushed himself up into a sitting position. "You're just going to make it worse."

Mal huffed, still trying to pull the knot of hair apart. "It'll be fine. Though this reminds me why I used to wear it short."

Chad shook his head and leaned over to snatch up the hairbrush. He folded the map in half so that a large space opened between them on the bed. He patted the bedspread in front of him.

Mal blinked at him. "What?"

"It'll be easier if I do it for you."

"I know how to brush my own hair," Mal snapped.

Chad raised an eyebrow. "Without ripping it out when you get frustrated? Come now, what would Evie say to that?"

Mal just scowled at him but finally a smile broke through at the mention of Evie. In truth, Evie was the one who typically brushed Mal's hair, so Mal had less practice in it than she cared to admit. And Chad was right; Evie would have just lost it if she had seen Mal trying to tear the tangle out of her hair. She could hear the cries of "Split ends!" already.

She moved so she was sitting in front of Chad, her back to him and her legs crossed. "You really don't have to do this," she said as he pulled her hair back from her neck so that it all hung down her back.

"I know," Chad said. He then fell silent, and Mal felt gentle tugs at the bottom of her hair where he was now concentrating his efforts.

Little by little, he inched his way up her hair as he gently untangled the knots she had been so eager to rip out. There were a few tugs that were less than pleasant, but couldn't be avoided with how tangled her hair had become form the pool and shower. Besides, she had never had access to anything luxurious like moisturizing shampoo or any type of conditioner on the Isle, so her hair had always been prone to deep tangling.

As he moved up to work on her scalp, the brush ran more easily through her hair. He was able to do longer strokes, smooth sweeping motions that sent chills down her spine as the hair was gently moved.

"Would you like me to braid it?" Chad asked after a few more easy strokes.

Mal blinked her eyes open from where they had fallen shut at some point under his lulling touch. "Oh, uh, you know how to braid? I didn't think you had sisters."

"I don't," Chad said. "Rapunzel was my first-grade teacher, and she taught us weaving and braiding during arts and crafts. We sometimes had team competitions where the team that could braid her hair the prettiest got an extra piece of candy before they went home for the day."

Mal laughed and glanced at him over her shoulder. "Oh, so you have like super experience with braiding then."

"Well," Chad said, blushing, "yeah, I mean, I don't remember all of it, but I can recall some different styles she taught us."

Mal turned so she was facing away properly again. "Well, if you want to, go for it."

She wasn't sure why she was encouraging this. Did she want him to keep touching her even in this seemingly platonic way? It did give her an excuse to enjoy his touch without it having to mean anything more. Right?

"Lean your head back a bit," Chad said.

Mal lifted her chin so she was looking more up at the ceiling rather than straight ahead at the opposite wall. Immediately after she did so, she felt his fingers agilely separating the hair at the crown of her head. "What style are you going to do? French?"

"Yep," Chad replied, now working on braiding those portions of hair together.

Again, his movements were slow and measured as he worked on her hair. As he pulled more and more of her purple locks into the braid, she felt the plait tighten while her neck grew steadily chillier. When his hand swept along the back of her neck to gather up the remaining sections of hair, she shivered.

"Everything ok?" Chad asked.

"Yeah," Mal said. She tried to make herself focus on the pattern of the ceiling. She tried to focus on anything that was not Chad's hands on her neck or in her hair. Anything that wasn't the butterflies dancing in her stomach with every gentle tug to her hair as he worked.

"Done," he said a moment later. "Do you have a hair tie?"

Mal pulled the tie off her wrist and handed it over her shoulder to him. An instant later, the end of the plait appeared over her shoulder as he tossed the finished braid forward.

Mal shifted her body so she was sitting at an angle to him. She wasn't completely facing him, but she could see him now at least. "Thanks."

Chad grinned at her, showing his perfect pearly teeth. "My pleasure." He waited a moment and then handed her the hairbrush. "So…"

"So, uh, yeah," Mal said, blinking and hurrying to get up off the bed. Now that he had finished her hair, she could find no excuse to stay that close to him, so she had to move. She grabbed the hairbrush and walked it over to her duffel. She dropped it inside and then began shifting the contents of the bag around as if she were looking for something. She wasn't really. Well, maybe she was looking for her calm, but it was clearly nowhere in this room. "You said Ben said that none of the magical weapons from the cellar at the cottage made it out of Mulan's mansion with them?"

"Yes, but, Mal-"

"So, what's the backup plan?" She lifted a pair of jeans from the bottom of the duffel to seemingly search under them.

"I guess the army is our backup plan, but, are you-"

"Did you find a route on the map to talk to Ben about?" She dropped the jeans back inside and unfolded and refolded a t-shirt.

"Mal, I-"

Mal tuned him out as she plucked out the same t-shirt she had just dropped in and folded it backwards. Before she could toss it back inside her duffel, hands closed around her wrists. She looked up into Chad's face.

"Mal," he said as his eyes searched her expression. "What just happened? What's wrong?"

She shook her head, but she knew he could feel it. Her hands were trembling.

"Mal. Did I do something wrong?"

She shook her head again, more vigorously this time. A few tears leaked from her eyes. She cursed herself mentally as more followed and a sob escaped her mouth.

Chad pulled her into his arms, his hands moving from her wrists to her back. "What's wrong? Talk to me."

"I just." Mal swallowed, trying to pull her thoughts together before she answered him. But it proved futile, and the words came rushing out anyway. "I just need to feel in control of something. You braiding my hair felt really nice and I started feeling really…well, I can't control how I feel about you. I told you I wanted to figure it out, but I thought I wouldn't do that until this whole mess with Uma is over. And," she took a shuddering breath, pressing her forehead against his shoulder as her hands clasped into the back of his t-shirt, "I don't want to have these feelings developing for you right now because Uma or any villains could kill any one of us when we march on the capital in a few days. I don't want to have to worry about losing someone who is more than a friend."

Chad's arms tightened around her, and she buried her face against his chest now as she tried to stop the tears. She hated feeling out of control, and that was exactly how she felt in that moment. She couldn't stop herself from developing these feelings for Chad. They had been slowly growing since his confession at the cottage. But, even when she had started to realize they were there, she pushed them away. It was too risky to fall in love during a war. Love could be used against her.

And, well, maybe there was still a part of her that had been so steeped in her mother's teachings that made her believe love was still weak. But, logically, she knew it wasn't. Love was wonderful, and it had been wonderful when she had had it with Ben. Why couldn't it be wonderful again with Chad?

"You can wait until after we solve the problem with Uma," Chad said softly into the crown of her head. He pressed a kiss there a moment later. "I'll just…I can back off for a bit. Let you get that control you want."

Mal lifted her head a bit so she could look up at him. Her eyes were damp from her tears, as was his shirt. "I told you I can't control how I feel about you." She swallowed and looked thoughtful for a moment. "But," she said slowly, "I guess I can control what I do with and about those feelings."

Chad raised an eyebrow, not following her exactly. But, the next instant, she raised herself onto her tiptoes and kissed him sweetly. She was still shaking and clinging to his shirt, but he gripped her so tightly as he returned the kiss that she quickly forgot why she had been worried about those feelings in the first place.


	16. Chapter 16

Ben stood at the middle of the dining room table, his head bent over one of the enlarged maps. A selection of differently colored highlighters and markers lay scattered on either side of the map. Already, there were several paths drawn along streets and alleyways in blue, red, and yellow.

He sighed and pushed his hair back from his forehead. He walked to the other side of the table to view the map upside down. He had already done this several times, hoping the new perspective would open up a new path to try. All the paths already drawn on the map were not exactly going to be the most stealthy of entrance routes.

He nudged one of the dining room chairs further out of the way. He had already moved them all back against the wall so he could walk around the table freely without bumping into their legs. There had to be an easier way to enter the city undetected.

Maybe Lonnie would offer a better fresh pair of eyes once she was back. He had been so relieved when she had been the one to pull the sword out of the statue. Most everyone had assumed he would be the prime candidate, and honestly, he had dreaded them being right. He was only sixteen and could barely hope to keep his own country alive. He didn't want to imagine running two. Granted, if he was king of both Auradon and Camelot, they would have likely been combined then. But, that was so many more people. So many more citizens to disappoint.

So, yes, he had been relieved it was Lonnie. In fact, out of their group, he suspected she was even more perfect for the job than he was. The freaking sword could obviously tell that better than his friends could. She knew the most about warfare given that her parents had both served in a war and taught their daughter battle strategies. And she had the determination they needed. After all, she had gotten herself onto an all-male fencing team by being the best and not taking no for an answer.

"You're going to be seeing that map in your sleep," said a voice from the doorway.

"One can only hope," Ben muttered, not even looking up. "Round-the-clock thinking would be perfect right about now."

The click of heeled boots on the hardwood floor alerted Ben to Evie's approach, and he looked up exactly as she stopped beside him. A frown creased both her forehead and her mouth.

"What?" Ben asked and finally straightened.

"I'm worried," Evie said.

"We just need to find the right path into the city. If we can get to the palace, we'll use the secret entrance into my study. I highly doubt Uma's found it."

"No, I mean…" Evie sighed and crossed her arms over her stomach. "There's too many factors we can't account for. We don't know where all of Uma's patrols or henchmen or whatever will be. She could be anywhere herself, and if she's on one of the higher floors of the palace, she'll likely see us coming regardless."

"We'll have the army from Camelot, and they'll serve as a distraction," Ben reminded her.

"Yes, but we have to make sure that whoever is going after Uma can maneuver through the chaos quickly to her. Otherwise, there will be too many causalities."

"They're trained soldiers. I'm sure they'll be fine for the most part." Ben glanced back at the map and then bent close to highlight the space where he knew the secret entrance to the palace was even though it wasn't marked on the map.

"Villains play dirty. How many times do I have to tell you that?" Evie asked. "They will kill without hesitation. That army may see a bunch of kids and hesitate. Then what?"

"I'm going to speak to Lonnie. They won't hesitate. They will see them as the people who killed their king."

"Only Uma did that." Evie brushed her hair back from her shoulders.

"Yes, but there are plenty that side with her."

"Honestly, most of those villain kids probably don't know what Uma's been up to. Shoot, I bet half of her crew doesn't even know. They just follow orders."

Ben dragged a hand over his face. "I understand, but what do you want me to say? We have to get to Uma and put a stop to this mess regardless of who stands in the way. That means the army can't hesitate with anyone who tries to stop them, and neither can we. Is there something wrong with that plan?"

"No," Evie said with a sigh. "I guess I just wish we could find a way that didn't sound like it will be so bloody."

"I know," Ben said, turning to her and taking her hand. "So do I. But given the circumstances, there's only so much I can do to prevent that. The quicker we get in, the quicker we might be able to end this. And that's why I'm trying to burn this map into my brain with all the possible routes. We don't know which will be blocked or become blocked while we're there."

Evie nodded and squeezed his hand lightly. "Well, maybe you'd like to take a break? You've been standing over that thing for hours now."

Ben entwined their fingers. "I guess I could. What did you have in mind?"

Evie grinned, her shoulders relaxing a little when he agreed. All this talk of war and battle strategy put her on edge. She knew it had to be talked about, but she and Ben both knew that wasn't her area of expertise. She just wanted to continue their date or some semblance of it. "Anita told me they have a greenhouse in the backyard. Lots of flowers and other plants. I was hoping just to take a stroll through it maybe, and I didn't want to go alone."

Ben offered her a warm smile. "Sure."

The greenhouse was not humid at all, which both surprised and relieved Evie. She didn't exactly want to turn into a sticky, fluffy-haired monster. In place of the humidity was a cool calm, partially aided by a fan set in the back wall of the greenhouse that drew fresh outside air into the long enclosure. All around the walls were tables with various potted plants. In the center of the rectangle of plants was a small metal table with two chairs. Evie absently wondered if Roger and Anita came out here to read or have tea among the pleasant presence of the plants.

Evie smiled and breathed in the aroma of the flowers. They were all in bloom, covering a warm color spectrum of oranges, yellows, reds, and pinks. "It's so beautiful."

Ben laced his fingers through hers and gave her hand a squeeze. "I'll have to show you the greenhouses at the palace once this is all over. Well, I mean, once they're back to themselves. I'm sure they've been destroyed."

Evie pulled him over to the table. "Let's not talk about that stuff in here. You're taking a break from the war and destruction stuff for a moment."

Ben nodded and pulled back one of the chairs. For a split second, Evie thought he was pulling it out for her, but he sat down and pulled her into his lap.

Giggling, Evie collapsed against him, one hand on his shoulder to steady herself as she adjusted how she was sitting in his lap. He promptly buried his face in her hair and took a deep breath.

"When this is all over," he said, his breath fanning over her neck and making her shiver, "I'll take you on a real date. To a café where they serve macaroons and puff pastries. Or out for frozen yogurt, and you can get as many toppings as you want. I'll take you to see the fireworks and water and light show at Mermaid Lagoon. And-"

Evie cut him off with a happy kiss and then pulled back to look at his face. "As long as it's with you, I don't care where we go. I enjoyed our board game and movie date at Mulan's."

Ben nodded, though his eyes showed sadness for a moment. "Until the earthquake, but yes, I wanted to finish that date too. Granted, that's because I was winning."

Evie scoffed and hit his shoulder playfully. "You were not! I had more palaces than you!"

"I had the more expensive properties, and you were out of money from buying all those palaces."

Evie rolled her eyes and pecked his cheek. "Whatever. We'll have a rematch and see for sure later. For now, just kiss me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More chapters coming soon! Don't be a ghost reader! Leave a comment; give a kudos; I love hearing from readers!
> 
> Foarrin


	17. Chapter 17

Mal was accustomed to pain, but this was something different.

A few hours after her moment with Chad, Merlin had called Jane and updated them all on the situation. He and Lonnie would be back with the army in tow by the morning. In the meantime, he wanted Jane to keep practicing the handful of spells he had taught her.

Unfortunately for Mal, this meant she became Jane's sparring partner. So, in the last few hours before midnight, Mal and Jane had thrown fists of fire, waves of water, and gusts of wind at each other. Mal had gone easy on Jane at first, but quickly, she had found that the girl was much more powerful than she had anticipated. Several times, Mal found herself on the ground or the knee of her jeans on fire. What Jane dished out though, she threw back in equal measure. By the end of the night, both girls were exhausted and had been burned and bruised in several areas.

"Hold still," Evie said with a huff. She snatched Mal's hand back into her grip and massaged more burn ointment onto the back of her wrist and up a good length of her forearm.

"I can't help it," Mal hissed. "It hurts."

"It'll hurt more without the cream." Evie laid the tube of cream aside on a towel she had placed on the comforter of the bed and then reached for the roll of gauze.

Mal just huffed and forced herself to hold still while Evie wrapped her hand.

Evie tied off the gauze and looked up, grinning. "See? All done." She reached forward and tucked a loose strand of Mal's hair, which had come loose from the braid Chad had done, behind her ear. "I meant to ask earlier, but who did your hair? Did Jane do it? You never could get the hang of the French braid."

"Oh." Mal swallowed and looked at her hands in her lap. Now would have been a good time for them not to be burnt and bruised as she desperately felt the urge to wring them together from her nerves. "Chad did it."

"Chad?" Evie raised an eyebrow. "That raises a lot of questions, but obviously the most important is – you let him braid it? Why?"

"I was having trouble brushing it after the pool," Mal explained.

"Pool? You were in the pool?"

"Yeah, I guess you weren't outside then. He's teaching me how to swim."

Evie held up both her hands in a 'stop everything' gesture. "Back up. He's braided your hair and is teaching you how to swim? Did I miss something? I know Chad got you from the Isle, but…like, what has happened? Are you two…dating?"

A blush sprung up Mal's neck and face. "Um, I, I guess." And she suddenly launched into the story of what had happened between her and Chad since his confession at the cottage and how her feelings had changed. By the time Mal had gotten to the kiss from a few hours ago, Evie was gaping at her.

"And you're just now telling me all this?" Evie squawked once Mal had finished.

"It's not like we've had a lot of time for girl talk. You've been in a tunnel for a whole day previous to this!" Mal crossed her arms over her chest as if to make her point but only ended up wincing as she pressed on her burns. She lowered her hands back to her lap, gingerly laying them there. "Besides, I could say the same to you about you and Ben."

Evie's face was immediately scarlet. "What? I, I-"

It was Mal's turn to raise an eyebrow. "I'm not stupid. I can see you both try to hide it when I'm around, but your eyes always find each other's, and you gravitate toward each other. You never used to sit or stand by him that much."

Evie cleared her throat and looked away. "It's not that I didn't want to tell you. Trust me, it's been killing me to hide it from you. I just, I just didn't know how you would react."

"I would have been happy for you." Mal frowned at her statement. "I mean, I am happy for you. For both of you. I was the one who decided to end things with Ben."

Evie looked back at her, her own frown in place now. "I know. But, we're best friends, Mal. I was worried…well, maybe you'd think it was too soon or it would make you feel awkward or, or, or I don't know! I'm sorry."

Mal shook her head. "It's ok. I mean, you're right: it is kind of weird to imagine. It's awkward for me to be around Ben regardless. But, I'm happy for you if he makes you happy. Just, maybe spare me the details of any, ah, romance?"

Evie blushed and laughed, her shoulders sagging in relief. "You got it. Same to you about Chad. Though, I don't know. I could stand to hear some romance-y details about him. I never officially dated him."

Mal rolled her eyes, resisting the urge to give her friend's shoulder a playful shove due to her hands being injured. "Don't count on it," she said with a laugh.

* * *

By ten the next morning, the manor was a flurry of activity. Merlin and Lonnie had gotten back with the army just after dawn. In the hours since, basically everyone not involved in battle strategy discussions took orders from Roger and Anita as they prepared breakfast for all the knights and troops.

The army was smaller than Ben had imagined. However, Lonnie had explained that there had been side effects of Uma's enchantment despite it being broken. Over half of the army had suffered extensive disorientation or loss of depth perception. These men had had to be sent back to Camelot since they were in no physical or mental state to fight. As such, there were only about one thousand men and twelve knights at the Dalmatian plantation.

"So, it's decided?" Knight Percival asked as he crossed his arms over his broad chest and surveyed the map on the dining room table one more time. The dining room had become the war room.

"Yes," Lonnie said. "Block all streets in and out of the city with your men. Divide them how you wish. But leave fifty here to guard the house and give me, Ben, Jane, and Mal each a group of ten fighters to go with us into the heart of the city."

Percival nodded and so did several others around the room. Mal was not one of them though. She was too focused on the fact she was expected to navigate the city with a group of ten soldiers at her side. She was used to being stealthy, and this was certainly not her idea of it. How was she supposed to get to Uma with a group that large? Granted, that's why they were sending in four of those groups – to hope that at least one of them made it to Uma.

Additionally, Mal was worried how her friends and Chad would react when they heard the decisions that Lonnie and Ben had made. Only the soldiers, knights, Lonnie, Ben, Jane, and herself were going into the city. Everyone else at the manor, including Fairy Godmother and Merlin, would be staying put. When Jane had argued that at least one of her parents should go, they had both explained how they needed to be at the manor preparing healing potions and any other medical needs for when they returned as there would inevitably be injuries, and Fairy Godmother and Merlin were the best healers they had.

The rest of the day was spent preparing supplies, weapons, and food. Ben stared at the map of his hometown until he could see the imprint of it on the back of his eyelids when he closed his eyes. They would get to Uma. They had to. This would be the end of any villain's reign of terror forever. Ben had already resolved that he would not make the same mistake his father had. He would make his own army and make the barrier to the Isle even stronger this time.

As for Uma, Ben and Lonnie had come to an instant, unanimous decision in their war discussions. There would be only one chance for her to surrender. If she didn't, they would kill her with no further hesitation.


	18. Chapter 18

Mal's heart hammered like a drum as she sprinted up the next city block. She ducked between two buildings, her remaining four soldiers following at her heels.

She pressed her back against the brick wall of the alley and surveyed the survivors of her original group, panting as she did so. Their faces gave nothing away, but this was because of the bandanas tied around the lower half of their faces. Mal had insisted that villains were particularly fond of smoke bombs with harmful chemicals and that they should all wear some sort of face covering to avoid inhaling as much of the particles as they could. Already this had come in handy as a group of villains had launched glass orbs at them that had exploded in black and white flames that charged at their group like a living animal. Clearly, in all their battle planning, they had forgotten to account for some of the villains and children from the Isle that had their own brand of magic. It was easy for this truth to slip even Mal's mind since magic had been neutralized on the Isle.

Looking at the soldiers now, she could see they were in bad shape. They had lost six men to those magic flames alone. It had swallowed them whole, encasing them in fire and reducing them to cinders before Mal had had time to blink. And they had only gotten away by sprinting up ten blocks until the magic in the flames dwindled and finally gave out.

They had only entered the city an hour ago. She had entered from the west while Lonnie took north, Ben took east, and Jane took south. This way, once their intrusion was noticed, the villains' forces would be divided in the four compass directions. Mal had just hoped they would get further into the city before running into this much trouble. Fist fights, swords, guns – all that she could handle. But fire that literally vaporized men within seconds was not up her alley. There had been no time to retaliate.; no time to call on any spells she had memorized.

"Plan?" one of the soldiers panted. He had pulled down his bandana so it hung around his neck like a turtle neck. He looked to be young, maybe a year younger than Mal even.

"Keep going," she said. She massaged the stitch in her side. "And pray there's no more fire like that. At least we didn't inhale all that smoke."

She pushed her bangs out of her eyes where sweat had glued them to her forehead. She peered around the corner. The street was clear, but that meant little to her when villains were so good at hiding. She could only hope the others were faring better than her group.

She looked back over her shoulder at her men and nodded. "Let's go."

* * *

Uma paced behind the desk in the study, her eyes roaming over the computer monitor. Ben and Mal and their friends were so stupid. Honestly. Had they forgotten that there were security cameras all over the city that sent their footage straight to the computer in this office? She had discovered this feature within the first few days of her residence in the palace, and it had come in handy since then. Now, she could watch the heroes try futilely to make their way to the palace to stop her.

A click sounded just before a voice came on over the walkie talkie that was set on the corner of the desk. "Uma, we've got one of them. Over."

Uma snatched up the radio and pressed the button on the side to talk. "Excellent. Which one? Over."

"One of the girls," came the voice after a moment's pause. That was the only thing Uma didn't like about the handheld radios; they were a fraction of a second too slow for her taste. "She has Excalibur."

Uma froze, frowning at the computer screen. The grid of camera feed shrunk the footage to a small scale, but she could read the label on top of each rectangular portion of the screen. There were over thirty cameras linked to this single screen. She waited for him to say 'over' and then asked what street they were on.

Upon receiving the answer, her gaze swept the monitor until she found one of the cameras labeled with the street name. She clicked on it to enlarge the frame. Footage of a dark-haired girl being held by two of her crew members popped up in the center of the screen.

Uma sneered. She didn't know her personally, but she remembered seeing her on the ship at the royal cotillion. So, she was the new owner of Excalibur. Yes, Uma knew the army and sword had not been in her grasp long when she had thought it through that Merlin would likely be able to break the spells she had cast. And regardless of how they had done it, she had realized she could not count on getting the sword or the army. But, it had been enough to derail the heroes' plans for the time being.

"Want us to bring her in? Over."

"Yes. Is there anyone else? Over."

"There was a group of soldiers with her. They're all dead now. Over."

"Good. Yeah, bring her to me. And don't lose the sword. Over."

"Roger. We will – wait. Shit!"

The feed crackled and then cut out completely. Uma turned back to the monitor and seethed with fury at what she saw.

* * *

Jane's conjured fireball collided with the radio in the boy's hand, and the device exploded. The boy screamed, the half of his face where he had been holding the walkie talkie nearest was now a melting, burning mess. As his hair caught fire and he fell to the ground writhing, Jane had to force herself to remember what Merlin had told her that morning before she left the manor: "There is no sympathy in war. Sympathy will get you killed."

So, Jane charged past the boy, and the two other boys holding Lonnie ran for it, not wanting to meet a similar fate as their comrade.

"Are you ok?" Jane asked, gripping Lonnie's forearms as the girl stumbled into her arms.

Lonnie nodded, but Jane could tell she was lying. Her lip had been busted open, and there was a hole in her jeans where a bullet was imbedded in her thigh.

"Lon, oh my gosh." Jane moved a hand to press against her friend's bleeding wound, but as she did so, Lonnie collapsed, and she was dragged to the ground with her.

"Miss Jane!" One of her group of soldiers seemed to materialize behind her. She had run away from them when she had seen Lonnie alone and in trouble. Now, the group of five were catching up.

"She's hurt!" Jane said, looking up and searching the soldier's face. "You have to take her back to the car and back to the plantation house."

"No, Jane, no, I can make it," Lonnie said, shaking her head.

Jane ignored her and waved the soldiers over. Two of them bent beside Lonnie and took her weight from Jane. "We've got her, miss."

Jane nodded and pushed herself up. "Get her back." She paused and then said, "All of you."

"Miss? All five of us?"

Jane nodded. She knew it was risky, but she couldn't stand the thought of sending Lonnie with just two soldiers to carry her. They could be attacked in the next block or so and they wouldn't stand a chance by the time they set her down to retaliate. They needed as much help as they could to get her back to the car safely.

"I'll be fine on my own. I'm less noticeable alone," Jane said, forcing the confidence into her voice even though her stomach twisted with nerves and adrenaline. "Go!"

* * *

Ben bent low behind a dumpster in an alley, his breath coming in heavy gasps that he was struggling to keep quiet. He clutched his right arm – his weapon-wielding hand – to his chest. In the ambush that had wiped out his entire group of soldiers, one of the attackers had gotten a lucky shot in, and there was now a bullet lodged in his forearm. He had ripped off a strip of fabric from the bottom of his shirt and tied it around the wound to slow the bleeding, but he couldn't move his hand without causing pain to erupt up his arm. He was totally useless to defend himself.

"Don't move," said a voice.

Ben tensed and looked up. He exhaled a shaky, relieved breath when he realized it was Gil standing in front of him. "Gil. You're not supposed to be here."

Gil stepped forward and grabbed the collar of his shirt. He dragged him up straight. "I'm good at sneaking into places I don't belong." He took Ben's injured arm and twisted it, making the bullet shift and Ben scream.

"What are you doing?!" Ben snapped, tugging at his grip, but Gil only tightened his hold.

"Turning you over to Uma," Gil said, his eyes darkening as he spoke. "You aren't going to win this. Do the math, and you'll see you have no chance. Uma will soon rule every inch of this land, and I will not be on her bad side when that happens. You're my ticket back into her good graces." He bent Ben's arm behind his back, causing the young king to scream again and tears to run down his cheeks. "Now, walk."

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos are appreciated! :D
> 
> Foarrin


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